UC-NRLF 


•^ 

• 


m 


O* 


LIB  R  AR  Y 

OF   THE 

UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA. 

GIRT    OR 


Receive          OCT  37.1892     ,  /<?p  .    . 
ccessions  No.  Itf}  4.2^1      Shelf  No. 

j 


•  r « 


TH  K 


SEA  LIONS; 


OR, 


THE     LOST     SEALER  S 


BY    J.    FENIMORE    COOPER 

t? 


Daughter  of  Faith,  awake,  arise,  illume 
The  dread  unknown,  the  chaos  of  the  tomb ; 
Melt,  and  dispel,  ye  spectre  doubts  that  roll 
Cimmerian  darkness  o'er  the  parting  soul 

Cam. 


COM  PL  E*TE\fN\b^NE    VO  L  UME. 


NEW    EDITION. 


NEW    YORK: 
STRINGER      AND      TOWNSEND. 

1866. 


SEA  LIONS. 


Entered,  according  to  the  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  1849,  by 
J.  FENIMORE  COOPER. 

in  the  clerk's  office  of  the  District  Court  for  the  Northern  District 
of  New  York. 


PRINTED      BY 
E.  W.  GROSSMAN, 

&  84  BeeVmuru  St 


PREFACE. 


IF  any  thing  connected  with  the  hardness  of  the 
human  heart  could  surprise  us,  it  surely  would  be  the 
indifference  with  which  men  live  on,  engrossed  by 
their  worldly  objects,  amid  the  sublime  natural  pheno 
mena  that  so  eloquently  and  unceasingly  speak  to  their 
imaginations,  affections,  and  judgments.  So  com 
pletely  is  the  existence  of  the  individual  concentrated 
in  self,  and  so  regardless  does  he  get  to  be  of  all  with 
out  that  contracted  circle,  that  it  does  not  probably 
happen  to  one  man  in  ten,  that  his  thoughts  are  drawn 
aside  from  this  intense  study  of  his  own  immediate 
wants,  wishes,  and  plans,  even  once  in  the  twenty-four 
hours,  to  contemplate  the  majesty,  mercy,  truth,  and 
justice,  of  the  Divine  Being  that  has  set  him,  as  an 
atom,  amid  the  myriads  of  the  hosts  of  heaven  and 
earth. 

The  physical  marvels  of  the  universe  produce  little 
more  reflection  than  the  profoundest  moral  truths.  A 
million  of  eyes  shall  pass  over  the  firmament,  on  a 
cloudless  night,  and  not  a  hundred  minds  shall  be  filled 
with  a  proper  sense  of  the  power  of  the  dread  Being 
that  created  all  that  is  there — not  a  hundred  hearts 
glow  with  the  adoration  that  such  an  appeal  to  the 
senses  and  understanding  ought  naturally  to  produce. 
This  indifference,  in  a  great  measure,  comes  of  fami 
liarity  ;  the  things  that  we  so  constantly  have  before 

liii) 


IV  PREFACE. 

us,  becoming  as  a  part  of  the  air  we  breathe,  and  as 
little  regarded. 

One  of  the  consequences  of  this  disposition  to  dis 
regard  the  Almighty  Hand,  as  it  is  so  plainly  visible 
in  all  around  us,  is  that  of  substituting  our  own  pow 
ers  in  its  stead.  In  this  period  of  the  world,  in  en 
lightened  countries,  and  in  the  absence  of  direct  idol 
atry,  few  men  are  so  hardy  as  to  deny  the  existence 
and  might  of  a  Supreme  Being ;  but,  this  fact  admit 
ted,  how  few  really  feel  that  profound  reverence  for 
him  that  the  nature  of  our  relations  justly  demands ! 
It  is  the  want  of  a  due  sense  of  humility,  and  a  sad 
misconception  of  what  we  are,  and  for  what  we  were 
created,  that  misleads  us  in  the  due  estimate  of  our 
own  insignificance,  as  compared  with  the  majesty  of 
God. 

Very  few  men  attain  enough  of  human  knowledge 
to  be  fully  aware  how  much  remains  to  be  learned, 
and  of  that  which  they  never  can  hope  to  acquire. 
We  hear  a  great  deal  of  god-like  minds,  and  of  the 
far-reaching  faculties  we  possess ;  and  it  may  all  be 
worthy  of  our  eulogiums,  until  we  compare  ourselves 
in  these,  as  in  other  particulars,  with  Him  who  pro 
duced  them.  Then,  indeed,  the  utter  insignificance  of 
our  means  becomes  too  apparent  to  admit  of  a  cavil. 
We  know  that  we  are  born,  and  that  we  die ;  science 
has  been  able  to  grapple  with  all  the  phenomena  of 
these  two  great  physical  facts,  with  the  exception  of 
the  most  material  of  all — those  which  should  tell  us 
what  is  life,  and  what  is  death.  Something  that  we 
cannot  comprehend  lies  at  the  root  of  every  distinct 
division  of  natural  phenomena.  Thus  far  shalt  thou 


1  . 

PREFACE.  T 

go  and  no  farther,  seems  to  be  imprinted  on  every 
great  fact  of  creation.  There  is  a  point  attained  in 
each  and  all  of  our  acquisitions,  where  a  mystery  that 
no  human  mind  can  scan  takes  the  place  of  demon 
stration  and  conjecture.  This  point  may  lie  more 
remote  with  some  intellects  than  with  others ;  but  it 
exists  for  all,  arrests  the  inductions  of  all,  conceals  all. 

We  are  aware  that  the  more  learned  among  those 
who  disbelieve  in  the  divinity  of  Christ  suppose  them 
selves  to  be  sustained  by  written  authority,  contending 
for  errors  of  translation,  mistakes  and  misapprehen 
sions  in  the  ancient  texts.  Nevertheless,  we  are  in 
clined  to  think  that  nine-tenths  of  those  who  refuse  the 
old  and  accept  the  new  opinion,  do  so  for  a  motive  no 
better  than  a  disinclination  to  believe  that  which  they 
cannot  comprehend.  This  pride  of  reason  is  one  of 
the  most  insinuating  of  our  foibles,  and  is  to  be  watched 
as  a  most  potent  enemy. 

How  completely  and  philosophically  does  the  vene 
rable  Christian  creed  embrace  and  modify  all  these 
workings  of  the  heart !  We  say  philosophically,  for 
it  were  not  possible  for  mind  to  give  a  juster  analysis 
of  the  whole  subject  than  St.  Paul's  most  comprehen 
sive  but  brief  definition  of  Faith.  It  is  this  Faith 
which  forms  the  mighty  feature  of  the  church  on 
earth.  It  equalizes  capacities,  conditions,  means,  and 
ends,  holding  out  the  same  encouragement  and  hope 
to  the  least,  as  to  the  most  gifted  of  the  race ;  count 
ing  gifts  in  their  ordinary  and  more  secular  points  of 
view. 

It  is  when  health,  or  the  usual  means  of  success 
abandon  us,  that  we  are  made  to  feel  how  totally  we 
1* 


71  PREFACE. 

are  insufficient  for  the  achievement  of  even  our  own 
purposes,  much  less  to  qualify  us  to  reason  on  the  deep 
mysteries  that  conceal  the  beginning  and  the  end.  It 
has  often  been  said  that  the  most  successful  leaders  of 
their  fellow  men  have  had  the  clearest  views  of  their 
own  insufficiency  to  attain  their  own  objects.  If  Na 
poleon  ever  said,  as  has  been  attributed  to  him,  "  Je 
propose  etje  dispose"  it  must  have  been  in  one  of  those 
fleeting  moments  in  which  success  blinded  him  to  the 
fact  of  his  own  insufficiency.  No  man  had  a  deeper 
reliance  on  fortune,  cast  the  result  of  great  events  on 
the  decrees  of  fate,  or  more  anxiously  watched  the 
rising  and  setting  of  what  he  called  his  "  star."  This 
was  a  faith  that  could  lead  to  no  good ;  but.  it  clearly 
denoted  how  far  the  boldest  designs,  the  most  ample 
means,  and  the  most  vaulting  ambition,  fall  short  of 
giving  that  sublime  consciousness  of  power  and  its 
fruits  that  distinguish  the  reign  of  Omnipotence. 

In  this  book  the  design  has  been  to  pourtray  man  on 
a  novel  field  of  action,  and  to  exhibit  his  dependence 
on  the  hand  that  does  not  suffer  a  sparrow  to  fall 
unheeded.  The  recent  attempts  of  science,  which 
employed  the  seamen  of  the  four  greatest  maritime 
states  of  Christendom,  made  discoveries  that  have 
rendered  the  polar  circles  much  more  familiar  to 
this  age,  than  to  any  that  has  preceded  it,  so  far  as 
existing  records  show.  We  say  "  existing  records ;" 
for  there  is  much  reason  for  believing  that  the  ancients 
had  a  knowledge  of  our  hemisphere,  though  less  for 
supposing  that  they  ever  braved  the  dangers  of 
the  high  latitudes.  Many  are,  just  at  this  moment, 
much  disposed  to  believe  that  "Ophir"  was  on  this 


PREFACE.  Vil 

continent ;  though  for  a  reason  no  better  than  the  cir 
cumstance  of  the  recent  discoveries  of  much  gold. 
Such  savans  should  remember  that  *  peacocks'  came 
from  ancient  Ophir.  If  this  be  in  truth  that  land,  the 
adventurers  of  Israel  caused  it  to  be  denuded  of  that 
bird  of  beautiful  plumage. 

Such  names  as  those  of  Parry,  Sabine,  Ross,  Frank 
lin,  Wilkes,  Hudson,  Ringgold,  &c.,  &c.,  with  those 
of  divers  gallant  Frenchmen  and  Russians,  command 
our  most  profound  respect ;  for  no  battles  or  victories 
can  redound  more  to  the  credit  of  seamen  than  the 
dangers  they  all  encountered,  and  the  conquests  they 
have  all  achieved.  One  of  those  named,  a  resolute  and 
experienced  seaman,  it  is  thought  must,  at  this  mo 
ment,  be  locked  in  the  frosts  of  the  arctic  circle,  after 
having  passed  half  a  life  in  the  endeavour  to  push  his 
discoveries  into  those  remote  and  frozen  regions.  He 
bears  the  name  of  the  most  distinguished  of  the  philo 
sophers  of  this  country ;  and  nature  has  stamped  on 
his  features — by  one  of  those  secret  laws  which  just  as 
much  baffle  our  means  of  comprehension,  as  the 
greatest  of  all  our  mysteries,  the  incarnation  of  the 
Son  of  God — a  resemblance  that,  of  itself,  would  go  to 
show  that  they  are  of  the  same  race.  Any  one  who 
has  ever  seen  this  emprisoned  navigator,  and  who  is 
familiar  with  the  countenances  of  the  men  of  the  same 
name  who  are  to  be  found  in  numbers  amongst  our 
selves,  must  be  struck  with  a  likeness  that  lies  as  much 
beyond  the  grasp  of  that  reason  of  which  we  are  so 
proud,  as  the  sublimest  facts  taught  by  induction, 
science,  or  revelation.  Parties  are,  at  this  moment, 
out  in  search  of  him  and  his  followers ;  and  it  is  to  be 


Vlll  PREFACE. 

hoped  that  the  Providence  which  has  so  singularly  at- 
tempered  the  different  circles  and  zones  of  our  globe, 
placing  this  under  a  burning  sun,  and  that  beneath 
enduring  frosts,  will  have  included  in  its  divine  fore 
thought  a  sufficient  care  for  these  bold  wanderers  to 
restore  them,  unharmed,  to  their  friends  and  country. 
In  a  contrary  event,  their  names  must  be  transmitted 
to  posterity  as  the  victims  to  a  laudable  desire  to  en 
large  the  circle  of  human  knowledge,  and  with  it,  we 
trust,  to  increase  the  glory  due  to  God. 


THE   SEA  LIONS. 


CHAPTER  I. 

"  When  that 's  gone 

He  shall  drink  naught  but  brine/' 

Tempest. 

WHILE  there  is  less  of  that  high  polish  in  America  that 
is  obtained  by  long  intercourse  with  the  great  world,  than 
is  to  be  found  in  nearly  every  European  country,  there  is 
much  less  positive  rusticity  also.  There,  the  extremes  of 
society  are  widely  separated,  repelling  rather  than  attract 
ing  each  other ;  while  among  ourselves,  the  tendency  is  to 
gravitate  towards  a  common  centre.  Thus  it  is,  that  all 
things  in  America  become  subject  to  a  mean  law  that  is 
productive  of  a  mediocrity  which  is  probably  much  above 
the  average  of  that  of  most  nations;  possibly  of  all,  Eng 
land  excepted ;  but  which  is  only  a  mediocrity,  after  all. 
In  this  way,  excellence  in  nothing  is  justly  appreciated, 
nor  is  it  often  recognised ;  and  the  suffrages  of  the  nation 
are  pretty  uniformly  bestowed  on  qualities  of  a  secondary 
class.  Numbers  have  sway,  and  it  is  as  impossible  to  resist 
them  in  deciding  on  merit,  as  it  is  to  deny  their  power  in 
the  ballot-boxes ;  time  alone,  with  its  great  curative  in 
fluence,  supplying  the  remedy  that  is  to  restore  the  public 
mind  to  a  healthful  state,  and  give  equally  to  the  preteridei 
and  to  him  wRb  is  worthy  of  renown,  his  proper  place  in 
the  pages  of  history. 

The  activity  of  American  life,  the  rapidity  and  cheap 
ness  of  intercourse,  and  the  migratory  habits  both  have 
induced,  leave  little,  of  rusticity  and  local  character  in  any 

(7) 


S  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

particular  sections  of  the  country.  Distinctions,  that  an 
acute  observer  may  detect,  do  certainly  exist  between  the 
eastern  and  the  western  man,  between  the  northerner  and 
the  southerner,  the  Yankee  and  middle  states'  man ;  the 
Bostonian,  Manhattanese  and  Philadelphian ;  the  Tucka- 
hoe  and  the  Cracker ;  the  Buckeye  or  Wolverine,  and  the 
Jersey  Blue.  Nevertheless,  the  world  cannot  probably 
produce  another  instance  of  a  people  who  are  derived  from 
so  many  different  races,  and  who  occupy  so  large  an  extent 
of  country,  who  are  so  homogeneous  in  appearance,  cha 
racters  and  opinions.  There  is  no  question  that  the  insti 
tutions  have  had  a  material  influence  in  producing  this 
uniformity,  while  they  have  unquestionably  lowered  the 
standard  to  which  opinion  is  submitted,  by  referring  the 
decisions  to  the  many,  instead  of  making  the  appeal  to  the 
few,  as  is  elsewhere  done.  Still,  the  direction  is  onward, 
and  though  it  may  take  time  to  carve  on  the  social  column 
of  America  that  graceful  and  ornamental  capital  which  it 
forms  the  just  boast  of  Europe  to  possess,  when  the  task 
shall  be  achieved,  the  work  will  stand  on  a  base  so  broad 
as  to  secure  its  upright  attitude  for  ages. 

Notwithstanding  the  general  character  of  identity  and 
homogenity  that  so  strongly  marks  the  picture  of  American 
society,  exceptions  are  to  be  met  with,  in  particular  dis 
tricts,  that  are  not  only  distinct  and  incontrovertible,  but 
which  are  so  peculiar  as  to  be  worthy  of  more  than  a  pass 
ing  remark  in  our  delineations  of  national  customs.  Our 
present  purpose  leads  us  into  one  of  these  secluded  dis 
tricts,  and  it  may  be  well  to  commence  the  narrative  of 
certain  deeply  interesting  incidents  that  it  is  our  intention 
to  attempt  to  portray,  by  first  referring  to  the  place  and 
people  where  and  from  whom  the  principal  actors  in  our 
legend  had  their  origin. 

Every  one  at  all  familiar  with  the  map  of  America  knows 
the  position  and  general  form  of  the  two  islands  that  shelter 
the  well-known  harbour  of  the  great  emporium  of  the  com 
merce  of  the  country.  These  islands  obtained  their  names 
from  the  Dutch,  who  called  them  Nassau  and  Staten ;  but 
the  English,  with  little  respect  for  the  ancient  house  whence 
the  first  of  these  appellations  is  derived,  and  consulting 
only  the  homely  taste  which  leads  them  to  a  practical  rather 


THE    SEA     LIONS.  9 

then  to  a  poetical  nomenclature  in  all  things,  have  since 
virtually  dropped  the  name  of  Nassau,  altogether  substi 
tuting  that  of  Long  Island  in  its  stead. 

Long  Island,  or  the  island  of  Nassau,  extends  from  the 
mouth  of  the  Hudson  to  the  eastern  line  of  Connecticut ; 
forming  a  sort  of  sea-wall  to  protect  the  whole  coast  of  the 
latter  little  territory  against  the  waves  of  the  broad  Atlantic. 
Three  of  the  oldest  New  York  counties,  as  their  names 
would  imply,  Kings,  dueens,  and  Sutfolk,  are  on  this 
island.  Kings  was  originally  peopled  by  the  Dutch,  and 
still  possesses  as  many  names  derived  from  Holland  as 
from  England,  if  its  towns,  which  are  of  recent  origin,  be 
taken  from  the  account,  dueens  is  more  of  a  mixture, 
having  been  early  invaded  and  occupied  by  adventurers 
from  the  other  side  of  the  Sound ;  but  Suffolk,  which  con 
tains  nearly,  if  not  quite,  two-thirds  of  the  surface  of  the 
whole  island,  is  and  ever  has  been  in  possession  of  a  people 
derived  originally  from  the  puritans  of  New  England.  Of 
these  three  counties,  Kings  is  much  the  smallest,  though 
next  to  New  York  itself,  the  most  populous  county  in  the 
state ;  a  circumstance  that  is  owing  to  the  fact  that  two 
suburban  offsets  of  the  great  emporium,  Brooklyn  and  Wil- 
liamsburg,  happen  to  stand,  within  its  limits,  on  the  waters 
of  what  is  improperly  called  the  East  River ;  an  arm  of  the 
sea  that  has  obtained  this  appellation,  in  contradistinction 
to  the  Hudson,  which,  as  all  Manhattanese  well  know,  is 
as  often  called  the  North  River,  as  by  its  proper  name.  In 
consequence  of  these  two  towns,  or  suburbs  of  New  York, 
one  of  which  contains  nearly  a  hundred  thousand  souls, 
while  the  other  must  be  drawing  on  towards  twenty  thou 
sand,  Kings  county  has  lost  all  it  ever  had  of  peculiar,  or 
local  character.  The  same  is  true  of  dueens,  though  in  a 
diminished  degree ;  but  Suffolk  remains  Suffolk  still,  and 
it  is  with  Suffolk  alone  that  our  present  legend  requires  us 
to  deal.  Of  Suffolk,  then,  we  purpose  to  say  a  few  words 
by  way  of  preparatory  explanation. 

Although  it  has  actually  more  sea-coast  than  all  the  rest 
of  New  York  united,  Suffolk  has  but  one  sea-port  that  is 
ever  mentioned  beyond  the  limits  of  the  county  itself.  Nor 
is  this  port  one  of  general  commerce,  its  shipping  being 
principally  employed  in  the  hardy  and  manly  occupation 


10  THESEALIONS. 

of  whaling.  As  a  whaling  town,  Sag  Harbour  is  the  third 
or  fourth  port  in  the  country,  and  maintains  something  like 
that  rank  in  importance.  A  whaling  haven  is  nothing  with 
out  a  whaling  community.  Without  the  last,  it  is  almost 
hopeless  to  look  for  success.  New  York  can,  and  has  often 
fitted  whalers  for  sea,  having  sought  officers  in  the  regular 
whaling  ports;  but  it  has  been  seldom  that  the  enterprises 
have  been  rewarded  with  such  returns  as  to  induce  a  se 
cond  voyage  by  the  same  parties. 

It  is  as  indispensable  that  a  whaler  should  possess  a  cer 
tain  esprit  de  corps,  as  that  a  regiment,  or  a  ship  of  war, 
should  be  animated  by  its  proper  spirit.  In  the  whaling 
communities,  this  spirit  exists  to  an  extent,  and  in  a  de 
gree  that  is  wonderful,  when  one  remembers  the  great  ex 
pansion  of  this  particular  branch  of  trade  within  the  last 
five-and-twenty  years.  It  may  be  a  little  lessened  of  late, 
but  at  the  time  of  which  we  are  writing,  or  about  the  year 
1820,  there  was  scarcely  an  individual  who  followed  this 
particular  calling  out  of  the  port  of  Sag  Harbour,  whose 
general  standing  on  board  ship  was  not  as  well  known  to 
all  the  women  and  girls  of  the  place,  as  it  was  to  his  ship 
mates.  Success  in  taking  the  whale  was  a  thing  that  made 
itself  felt  in  every  fibre  of  the  prosperity  of  the  town ;  and 
it  was  just  as  natural  that  the  single-minded  population  of 
that  part  of  Suffolk  should  regard  the  bold  and  skilful  har- 
pooner,  or  lancer,  with  favour,  as  it  is  for  the  belle  at  a 
watering-place  to  bestow  her  smiles  on  one  of  the  young 
heroes  of  Contreras  or  Churubusco.  His  peculiar  merit, 
whether  with  the  oar,  lance,  or  harpoon,  is  bruited  about, 
as  well  as  the  number  of  whales  he  may  have  succeeded  in 
"  making  fast  to,"  or  those  which  he  caused  to  "  spout 
blood."  It  is  true,  that  the  great  extension  of  the  trade 
within  the  last  twenty  years,  by  drawing  so  many  from  a 
distance  into  its  pursuits,  has  in  a  degree  lessened  this 
local  interest  and  local  knowledge  of  character ;  but  at  the 
time  of  which  we  are  about  to  write,  both  were  at  their 
height,  and  Nantucket  itself  had  not  more  of  this  "  intelli 
gence  office"  propensity,  or  more  of  the  true  whaling  esprit 
de  corps,  than  were  to  be  found  in  the  district  of  country 
that  surrounded  Sag  Harbour. 

Long  Island  forks  at  its  eastern  end,  and  may  be  said  to 


THE     SEA     LIONS.  Jl 

have  two  extremities.  One  of  these,  which  is  much  the 
shortest  of  the  two  legs  thus  formed,  goes  by  the  name  of 
Oyster  Pond  Point ;  while  the  other,  that  stretches  much 
farther  in  the  direction  of  Blok  Island,  is  the  well-known 
cape  called  Montauk.  Within  the  fork  lies  Shelter  Island, 
so  named  from  the  snug  berth  it  occupies.  Between  Shelter 
Island  and  the  longest  or  southern  prong  of  the  fork,  are 
the  waters  which  compose  the  haven  of  Sag  Harbour,  an 
estuary  of  some  extent ;  while  a  narrow  but  deep  arm  of 
the  sea  separates  this  island  from  the  northern  prong,  that 
terminates  at  Oyster  Pond. 

The  name  of  Oyster  Pond  Point  was  formerly  applied  to  a 
long,  low,  fertile  and  pleasant  reach  of  land,  that  extended 
several  miles  from  the  point  itself,  westward,  towards  the 
spot  where  the  two  prongs  of  the  fork  united.  It  was  not 
easy,  during  the  first  quarter  of  the  present  century,  to  find 
a  more  secluded  spot  on  the  whole  island,  than  Oyster 
Pond.  Recent  enterprises  have  since  converted  it  into  the 
terminus  of  a  railroad ;  and  Green  Port,  once  called  Ster 
ling,  is  a  name  well  known  to  travellers  between  New 
York  and  Boston ;  but  in  the  earlier  part  of  the  present 
century  it  seemed  just  as  likely  that  the  Santa  Casa  of 
Loretto  should  take  a  new  flight  and  descend  on  the  point, 
as  that  the  improvement  that  has  actually  been  made  should 
in  truth  occur  at  that  out-of-the-way  place.  It  required, 
indeed,  the  keen  eye  of  a  railroad  projector  to  bring  this 
spot  in  connection  with  anything;  nor  could  it  be  done 
without  having  recourse  to  the  water  by  which  it  is  almost 
surrounded.  Using  the  last,  it  is  true,  means  have  been 
found  to  place  it  in  a  line  between  two  of  the  great  marts 
of  the  country,  and  thus  to  put  an  end  to  all  its  seclusion, 
its  simplicity,  its  peculiarities,  and  we  had  almost  said,  its 
happiness. 

It  is  to  us  ever  a  painful  sight  to  see  the  rustic  virtues 
rudely  thrown  aside  by  the  intrusion  of  what  are  termed 
improvements.  A  railroad  is  certainly  a  capital  invention 
for  the  traveller,  but  it  may  be  questioned  if  it  is  of  any 
other  benefit  than  that  of  pecuniary  convenience  to  the 
places  through  which  it  passes.  How  many  delightful 
hamlets,  pleasant  villages,  and  even  tranquil  county  towns, 
are  losing  their  primitive  characters  for  simplicity  and  con- 
2 


12  THE     SEA    LIONS. 

tentment,  by  the  passage  of  these  fiery  trains,  that  drag 
after  them  a  sort  of  bastard  elegance,  a  pretension  that  is 
destructive  of  peace  of  mind,  and  an  uneasy  desire  in  all 
who  dwell  by  the  way-side,  to  pry  into  the  mysteries  of  the 
whole  length  and  breadth  of  the  region  it  traverses ! 

We  are  writing  of  the  year  of  our  Lord  one  thousand 
eight  hundred  and  nineteen.  In  that  day,  Oyster  Pond 
was,  in  one  of  the  best  acceptations  of  the  word,  a  rural 
district.  It  is  true  that  its  inhabitants  were  accustomed 
to  the  water,  and  to  the  sight  of  vessels,  from  the  two- 
decker  to  the  little  shabby-looking  craft  that  brought  ashes 
from  town,  to  meliorate  the  sandy  lands  of  Suffolk.  Only 
five  years  before,  an  English  squadron  had  lain  in  Gardi 
ner's  Bay,  here  pronounced  'Gar'ner's,'  watching  the  Race, 
or  eastern  outlet  of  the  Sound,  with  a  view  to  cut  off  the 
trade  and  annoy  their  enemy.  That  game  is  up,  for  ever. 
No  hostile  squadron,  English,  French,  Dutch,  or  all  united, 
will  ever  again  blockade  an  American  port  for  any  serious 
length  of  time,  the  young  Hercules  passing  too  rapidly 
from  the  gristle  into  the  bone,  any  longer  to  suffer  antics 
of  this  nature  to  be  played  in  front  of  his  cradle.  But 
such  was  not  his  condition  in  the  war  of  1812,  and  the 
good  people  of  Oyster  Pond  had  become  familiar  with 
the  checkered  sides  of  two-deck  ships,  and  the  venerable 
and  beautiful  ensign  of  Old  England,  as  it  floated  above 
them. 

Nor  was  it  only  by  these  distant  views,  and  by  means 
of  hostilities,  that  the  good  folk  on  Oyster  Pond  were  ac 
quainted  with  vessels.  New  York  is  necessary  to  all  on 
the  coast,  both  as  a  market  and  as  a  place  to  procure  sup 
plies;  and  every  creek,  or  inlet,  or  basin,  of  any  sort, 
within  a  hundred  leagues  of  it,  is  sure  to  possess  one  or 
more  craft  that  ply  between  the  favourite  haven  and  the 
particular  spot  in  question.  Thus  was  it  with  Oyster  Pond. 
There  is  scarce  a  better  harbour  on  the  whole  American 
coast,  than  that  which  the  narrow  arm  of  the  sea  that  di 
vides  the  Point  from  Shelter  Island  presents ;  and  even  in 
the  simple  times  of  which  we  are  writing,  Sterling  had  its 
two  or  three  coasters,  such  as  they  were.  But  the  true 
maritime  character  of  Oyster  Pond,  as  well  as  that  of  all 
Suffolk,  was  derived  from  the  whalers,  and  its  proper  nu« 


THESEALIONS.  13 

cieus  was  across  the  estuary,  at  Sag  Harbour.  Thither  the 
youths  of  the  whole  region  resorted  for  employment,  and 
to  advance  their  fortunes,  and  generally  with  such  success 
as  is  apt  to  attend  enterprise,  industry  and  daring,  when 
exercised  with  energy  in  a  pursuit  of  moderate  gains. 
None  became  rich,  in  the  strict  signification  of  the  term, 
though  a  few  got  to  be  in  reasonably  affluent  circumstances; 
many  were  placed  altogether  at  their  ease,  and  more  were 
made  humbly  comfortable.  A  farm  in  America  is  well 
enough  for  the  foundation  of  family  support,  but  it  rarely 
suffices  for  all  the  growing  wants  of  these  days  of  indul 
gence,  and  of  a  desire  to  enjoy  so  much  of  that  which  was 
formerly  left  to  the  undisputed  possession  of  the  unques 
tionably  rich.  A  farm,  with  a  few  hundreds  per  annum, 
derived  from  other  sources,  makes  a  good  base  of  comfort 
and  if  the  hundreds  are  converted  into  thousands,  your 
farmer,  or  agriculturalist,  becomes  a  man  not  only  at  his 
ease,  but  a  proprietor  of  some  importance.  The  farms  on 
Oyster  Pond  were  neither  very  extensive,  nor  had  they 
owners  of  large  incomes  to  support  them ;  on  the  contrary, 
most  of  them  were  made  to  support  their  owners ;  a  thing 
that  is  possible,  even  in  America,  with  industry,  frugality 
and  judgment.  In  order,  however,  that  the  names  of  places 
we  may  have  occasion  to  use  shall  be  understood,  it  may 
be  well  to  be  a  little  more  particular  in  our  preliminary 
explanations. 

The  reader  knows  that  we  are  now  writing  of  Suffolk 
County,  Long  Island,  New  York.  He  also  knows  that  our 
opening  scene  is  to  be  on  the  shorter,  or  most  northern  of 
the  two  prongs  of  that  fork,  which  divides  the  eastern  end 
of  this  island,  giving  it  what  are  properly  two  capes.  The 
smallest  territorial  division  that  is  known  to  the  laws  of 
New  York,  in  rural  districts,  is  the  'township,'  as  it  is 
called.  These  townships  are  usually  larger  than  the  Eng 
lish  parish,  corresponding  more  properly  with  the  French 
canton.  They  vary,  however,  greatly  in  size,  some  con 
taining  as  much  as  a  hundred  square  miles,  which  is  the 
largest  size,  while  others  do  not  contain  more  than  a  tenth 
of  that  surface. 

The  township  in  which  the  northern  prong,  or  point  of 
Long  Island,  lies,  is  named  Southold,  and  includes  not 


14  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

only  all  of  the  long,  low,  narrow  land  that  then  went  by 
the  common  names  of  Oyster  Pond,  Sterling,  &c.,  but 
several  islands,  also,  which  stretch  off  in  the  Sound,  aa 
well  as  a  broader  piece  of  territory,  near  Riverhead.  Oyster 
Pond,  which  is  the  portion  of  the  township  that  lies  on  the 
4  point,'  is,  or  was,  for  we  write  of  a  remote  period  in  the 
galloping  history  of  the  state,  only  a  part  of  Southold,  and 
probably  was  not  then  a  name  known  in  the  laws,  at  all. 

We  have  a  wish,  also,  that  this  name  should  be  pro 
nounced  properly.  It  is  not  called  Oyster  Pond,  as  the 
uninitiated  would  be  very  apt  to  get  it,  but  Oyster  Pund, 
the  last  word  having  a  sound  similar  to  that  of  the  cock 
ney's  "  pound/  in  his  "  two  pund  two."  This  discrepancy 
between  the  spelling  and  the  pronunciation  of  proper  names 
is  agreeable  to  us,  for  it  shows  that  a  people  are  not  put  in 
leading  strings  by  pedagogues,  and  that  they  make  use  of 
their  own,  in  their  own  way.  We  remember  how  great 
was  our  satisfaction  once,  on  entering  Holmes'  Hole,  a 
well-known  bay  in  this  very  vicinity,  in  our  youth,  to  hear 
a  boatman  call  the  port,  '  Hum'ses  Hull.'  It  is  getting  to 
be  so  rare  to  meet  with  an  American,  below  the  higher 
classes,  who  will  consent  to  cast  this  species  of  veil  before 
his  school-day  acquisitions,  that  we  acknowledge  it  gives 
us  pleasure  to  hear  such  good,  homely,  old-fashioned  Eng 
lish  as  "  Gar'ner's  Island,"  "  Hum'ses  Hull,"  and  "  Oyster 
Pund." 

This  plainness  of  speech  was  not  the  only  proof  of  the 
simplicity  of  former  days  that  was  to  be  found  in  Suffolk, 
in  the  first  quarter  of  the  century.  The  eastern  end  of 
Long  Island  lies  so  much  out  of  the  track  of  the  rest  of  the 
world,  that  even  the  new  railroad  cannot  make  much  im 
pression  on  its  inhabitants,  who  get  their  pigs  and  poultry, 
butter  and  eggs,  a  little  earlier  to  market,  than  in  the  dayi 
of  the  stage-wagons,  it  is  true,  but  they  fortunately,  as  yet, 
bring  little  back  except  it  be  the  dross  that  sets  every  thing 
in  motion,  whether  it  be  by  rail,  or  through  the  sands,  in 
the  former  toilsome  mode. 

The  season,  at  the  precise  moment  when  we  desire  to 
take  the  reader  with  us  to  Oyster  Pond,  was  in  the  de 
lightful  month  of  September,  when  the  earlier  promises  of 
the  year  are  fast  maturing  into  performance,  Although 


THE    SEA     LIONS.  IE 

Suffolk,  as  a  whole,  can  scarcely  b*  deemed  a  productive 
county,  being  generally  of  a  thin,  light  soil,  and  stiil  covered 
with  a  growth  of  small  wood,  it  possesses,  nevertheless, 
spots  of  exceeding  fertility  A  considerable  portion  of  the 
northern  prong  of  the  fork  has  this  latter  character,  and 
Oyster  Pond  is  a  sort  of  garden  compared  with  much  of 
the  sterility  that  prevails  around  it.  Plain,  but  respectable 
dwellings,  with  numerous  out-buildings,  orchards  and  fruit- 
trees,  fences  carefully  preserved,  a  pains-taking  tillage, 
good  roads,  and  here  and  there  a  "  meeting-house,"  gave 
the  fork  an  air  of  rural  and  moral  beauty  that,  aided  by  the 
water  by  which  it  was  so  nearly  surrounded,  contributed 
greatly  to  relieve  the  monotony  of  so  dead  a  level.  There 
were  heights  in  view,  on  Shelter  Island,  and  bluffs  towards 
Riverhead,  which,  if  they  would  not  attract  much  attention 
in  Switzerland,  were  by  no  means  overlooked  in  Suffolk. 
In  a  word,  both  the  season  and  the  place  were  charming, 
though  most  of  the  flowers  had  already  faded ;  and  the  ap 
ple,  and  the  pear,  and  the  peach,  were  taking  the  places 
of  the  inviting  cherry.  Fruit  abounded,  notwithstanding 
the  close  vicinity  of  the  district  to  salt  water,  the  airs  from 
the  sea  being  broken,  or  somewhat  tempered,  by  the  land 
that  lay  to  the  southward. 

We  have  spoken  of  the  coasters  that  ply  between  the 
emporium  and  all  the  creeks  and  bays  of  the  Sound,  as 
well  as  of  the  numberless  rivers  that  find  an  outlet  for  their 
waters  between  Sandy  Hook  and  Rockaway.  Wharves 
were  constructed,  at  favourable  points,  inside  the  prong, 
and  occasionally  a  sloop  was  seen  at  them  loading  its  truck, 
or  discharging  its  ashes  or  street  manure,  the  latter  being 
a  very  common  return  cargo  for  a  Long  Island  coaster. 
At  one  wharf,  however,  now  lay  a  vessel  of  a  different 
mould,  and  one  which,  though  of  no  great  size,  was  mani- 
fastly  intended  to  go  outside.  This  was  a  schooner  that 
had  been  recently  launched,  and  which  had  advanced  no 
farther  in  its  first  equipment  than  to  get  in  its  two  princi 
pal  spars,  the  rigging  of  which  hung  suspended  over  the 
mast-heads,  in  readiness  to  be  "  set  up"  for  the  first  time. 
The  day  being  Sunday,  work  was  suspended,  and  this  so 
much  the  more,  because  the  owner  of  the  vessel  was  a  cer- 
Deacon  Pratt,  whojJwelt  in  a  house  within  half  a  mile 
2* 


16  THE     SEA     LIONS. 

of  the  wharf,  and  who  was  also  the  proprietor  of  three 
several  parcels  of  land  in  that  neighbourhood,  each  of  whicb 
had  its  own  buildings  and  conveniences,  and  was  properly 
enough  dignified  with  the  name  of  a  farm.  To  be  sure, 
neither  of  these  farms  was  very  large,  their  acres  united 
amounting  to  but  little  more  than  two  hundred  ;  but,  owing 
to  their  condition,  the  native  richness  of  the  soil,  and  the 
mode  of  turning  them  to  account,  they  had  made  Deacon 
Pratt  a  warm  man,  for  Suffolk. 

There  are  two  great  species  of  deacons  ;  for  we  suppose 
they  must  all  be  referred  to  the  same  genera.  One  species 
belong  to  the  priesthood,  and  become  priests  and  bishops  ; 
passing  away,  as  priests  and  bishops  are  apt  to  do,  with 
more  or  less  of  the  savour  of  godliness.  The  other  species 
are  purely  laymen,  and  are  sui  generis.  They  are,  ex  offi- 
cio,  the  most  pious  men  in  a  neighbourhood,  as  they  some 
times  are,  as  it  would  seem  to  us,  ex  qfficio,  also  the  most 
grasping  and  mercenary.  As  we  are  not  in  the  secrets  of 
the  sects  to  which  these  lay  deacons  belong,  we  shall  not 
presume  to  pronounce  whether  the  individual  is  elevated 
to  the  deaconate  because  he  is  prosperous,  in  a  worldly 
sense,  or  whether  the  prosperity  is  a  consequence  of  the 
deaconate ;  but,  that  the  two  usually  go  together  is  quite 
certain ;  which  being  the  cause,  and  which  the  effect,  we 
leave  to  wiser  heads  to  determine. 

Deacon  Pratt  was  no  exception  to  the  rule.  A  tighter 
fisted  sinner  did  not  exist  in  the  county  than  this  pious 
soul,  who  certainly  not  only  wore,  but  wore  out  the  "  form 
of  godliness,"  while  he  was  devoted,  heart  and  hand,  to  the 
daily  increase  of  worldly  gear.  No  one  spoke  disparagingly 
of  the  deacon,  notwithstanding.  So  completely  had  he  got 
to  be  interwoven  with  the  church — '  meeting/  we  ought  to 
say — in  that  vicinity,  that  speaking  disparagingly  of  him 
would  have  appeared  like  assailing  Christianity.  It  is  true, 
that  many  an  unfortunate  fellow-citizen  in  Suffolk  had 
been  made  to  feel  how  close  was  the  gripe  of  his  hand,  when 
he  found  himself  in  its  grasp ;  but  there  is  a  way  of  prac 
tising  the  most  ruthless  extortion,  that  serves  not  only  to 
deceive  the  world,  but  which  would  really  seem  to  mislead 
the  extortioner  himself.  Phrases  take  the  place  of  deeds, 
sentiments  those  of  facts,  and  grimaces  those  of  benevolent 


THESEALIONS.  17 

looks,  so  ingeniously  and  so  impudently,  that  the  wronged 
often  fancy  that  they  are  the  victims  of  a  severe  dispensa 
tion  of  Providence,  when  the  truth  would  have  shown  that 
they  were  simply  robbed. 

We  do  not  mean,  however,  that  Deacon  Pratt  was  a 
robber.  He  was  merely  a  hard  man  in  the  management  of 
his  affairs ;  never  cheating,  in  a  direct  sense,  but  seldom 
conceding  a  cent  to  generous  impulses,  or  to  the  duties  of 
kind.  He  was  a  widower,  and  childless,  circumstances 
that  rendered  his  love  of  gain  still  less  pardonable;  for 
many  a  man  who  is  indifferent  to  money  on  his  own  ac 
count,  will  toil  and  save  to  lay  up  hoards  for  those  who  are 
to  come  after  him.  The  deacon  had  only  a  niece  to  in 
herit  his  effects,  unless  he  might  choose  to  step  beyond 
that  degree  of  consanguinity,  and  bestow  a  portion  of  his 
means  on  cousins.  The  church — or,  to  be  more  literal, 
the  '  meeting' — had  an  eye  on  his  resources,  however ;  and 
it  was  whispered  it  had  actually  succeeded,  by  means 
known  to  itself,  in  squeezing  out  of  his  tight  grasp  no  less 
a  sum  than  one  hundred  dollars,  as  a  donation  to  a  certain 
theological  college.  It  was  conjectured  by  some  persons 
that  this  was  only  the  beginning  of  a  religious  liberality, 
and  that  the  excellent  and  godly-minded  deacon  would  be 
stow  most  of  his  property  in  a  similar  way,  when  the  mo 
ment  should  come  that  it  could  be  no  longer  of  any  use  to 
himself.  This  opinion  was  much  in  favour  with  divers 
devout  females  of  the  deacon's  congregation,  who  had 
daughters  of  their  own,  and  who  seldom  failed  to  conclude 
their  observations  on  this  interesting  subject  with  some 
such  remark  as,  "  Well,  in  that  case,  and  it  seems  to  me 
that  every  thing  points  that  way,  Mary  Pratt  will  get  no 
more  than  any  other  poor  man's  daughter." 

Little  did  Mary,  the  only  child  of  Israel  Pratt,  an  elder 
brother  of  the  deacon,  think  of  all  this.  She  had  been  left 
an  orphan  in  her  tenth  year,  both  parents  dying  within  a 
few  months  of  each  other,  and  had  lived  beneath  her  uncle's 
roof  for  nearly  ten  more  years,  until  use,  and  natural  affec 
tion,  and  the  customs  of  the  country,  had  made  her  feel 
absolutely  at  home  there.  A  less  interested,  or  less  selfish 
being  than  Mary  Pratt,  never  existed.  In  this  respect  she 
was  the  very  antipodes  of  her  uncle,  who  often  stealthily 


18  THE     SEA    LIONS. 

rebuked  her  for  her  charities  and  acts  of  neighbourly  kind- 
ness,  which  he  was  wont  to  term  waste.  But  Mary  kept 
the  even  tenor  of  her  way,  seemingly  not  hearing  such  re 
marks,  and  doing  her  duty  quietly,  and  in  all  humility. 

Suffolk  was  settled  originally  by  emigrants  from  New 
England,  and  the  character  of  its  people  is,  to  this  hour, 
of  modified  New  England  habits  and  notions.  Now,  one 
of  the  marked  peculiarities  of  Connecticut  is  an  indisposi 
tion  to  part  with  anything  without  a  quid  pro  quo.  Those 
little  services,  offerings,  and  conveniences  that  are  else 
where  parted  with  without  a  thought  of  remuneration,  go 
regularly  upon  the  day-book,  and  often  reappear  on  a  '  set 
tlement,'  years  after  they  have  been  forgotten  by  those  who 
received  the  favours.  Even  the  man  who  keeps  a  carriage 
will  let  it  out  for  hire ;  and  the  manner  in  which  money  is 
accepted,  and  even  asked  for  by  persons  in  easy  circum 
stances,  and  for  things  that  would  be  gratuitous  in  the 
Middle  States,  often  causes  disappointment,  and  sometimes 
disgust.  In  this  particular,  Scottish  and  Swiss  thrift,  both 
notorious,  and  the  latter  particularly  so,  are  nearly  equalled 
by  New  England  thrift ;  more  especially  in  the  close 
estimate  of  the  value  of  services  rendered.  So  marked, 
indeed,  is  this  practice  of  looking  for  requitals,  that  even 
the  language  is  infected  with  it.  Thus,  should  a  person 
pass  a  few  months  by  invitation  with  a  friend,  his  visit  is 
termed  '  boarding ;'  it  being  regarded  as  a  matter  of  course 
that  he  pays  his  way.  It  would  scarcely  be  safe,  indeed, 
without  the  precaution  of  "  passing  receipts"  on  quitting, 
for  one  to  stay  any  time  in  a  New  England  dwelling,  unless 
prepared  to  pay  for  his  board.  The  free  and  frank  habits 
that  prevail  among  relatives  and  friends  elsewhere,  are 
nearly  unknown  there,  every  service  having  its  price. 
These  customs  are  exceedingly  repugnant  to  all  who  have 
been  educated  in  different  notions ;  yet  are  they  not  with 
out  their  redeeming  qualities,  that  might  be  pointed  out  to 
advantage,  though  our  limits  will  not  permit  us,  at  this 
moment,  so  to  do. 

Little  did  Mary  Pratt  suspect  the  truth ;  but  habit,  or 
covetousness,  or  some  vague  expectation  that  the  girl  might 
yet  contract  a  marriage  that  would  enable  him  to  claim  all 
his  advances,  had  induced  the  deacon  never  to  bestow 


THE     SEA    LIONS. 


19 


a  cent  on  her  education,  or  dress,  or  pleasures  of  any 
sort,  that  the  money  was  not  regularly  charged  against 
her,  in  that  nefarious  work  that  he  called  his  "  day-book." 
As  for  the  self-respect,  and  the  feelings  of  caste,  which 
prevent  a  gentleman  from  practising  any  of  these  trades 
men's  tricks,  the  deacon  knew  nothing  of  them.  He  would 
have  set  the  man  down  as  a  fool  who  deferred  to  any  no 
tions  so  unprofitable.  With  him,  not  only  every  man,  but 
every  thing  "  had  its  price,"  and  usually  it  was  a  good 
price,  too.  At  the  very  moment  when  our  tale  opens  there 
stood  charged  in  his  book,  against  his  unsuspecting  and 
affectionate  niece,  items  in  the  way  of  schooling,  dress, 
board,  and  pocket-money,  that  amounted  to  the  considera 
ble  sum  of  one  thousand  dollars,  money  fairly  expended. 
The  deacon  was  only  intensely  mean  and  avaricious,  while 
he  was  as  honest  as  the  day.  Not  a  cent  was  overcharged  ; 
and  to  own  the  truth,  Mary  was  so  great  a  favourite  with 
him,  that  most  of  his  charges  against  her  were  rather  of  a 
reasonable  rate  than  otherwise. 


CHAPTER  II. 


"  Marry,  I  saw  your  niece  do  more  favours 
To  the  count's  serving-man,  than  ever  she  bestowed 
Upon  me ;  I  saw  it  i'  the  orchard." 

Twelfth  Night. 

ON  the  Sunday  in  question,  Deacon  Pratt  went  to  meet 
ing  as  usual,  the  building  in  which  divine  service  was  held 
that  day,  standing  less  than  two  miles  from  his  residence," 
but,  instead  of  remaining  for  the  afternoon's  preaching,  as 
was  his  wont,  he  got  into  his  one-horse  chaise,  the  vehicle 
then  in  universal  use  among  the  middle  classes,  though 
now  so  seldom  seen,  and  skirred  away  homeward  as  fast  as 
an  active,  well-fed  and  powerful  switch-tailed  mare  could 
draw  him ;  the  animal  being  accompanied  in  her  rapid 
progress  by  a  colt  of  some  three  months'  existence.  The 


20  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

residence  of  the  deacon  was  unusually  inviting  for  a  man 
of  his  narrow  habits.  It  stood  on  the  edge  of  a  fine  apple- 
orchard,  having  a  door-yard  of  nearly  two  acres  in  its  front. 
This  door-yard,  which  had  been  twice  mown  that  summer, 
was  prettily  embellished  with  flowers,  and  was  shaded  by 
four  rows  of  noble  cherry-trees.  The  house  itself  was  of 
wood,  as  is  almost  uniformly  the  case  in  Suffolk,  where 
little  stone  is  to  be  found,  and  where  brick  constructions 
are  apt  to  be  thought  damp ;  but,  it  was  a  respectable  edi 
fice,  with  five  windows  in  front,  and  of  two  stories.  The 
siding  was  of  unpainted  cedar-shingles ;  and,  although  the 
house  had  been  erected  long  previously  to  the  revolution, 
the  siding  had  been  renewed  but  once,  about  ten  years  be 
fore  the  opening  of  our  tale,  and  the  whole  building  was  in 
a  perfect  state  of  repair.  The  thrift  of  the  deacon  rendered 
him  careful,  and  he  was  thoroughly  convinced  of  the  truth 
of  the  familiar  adage  which  tells  us  that  "  a  stitch  in  time, 
saves  nine."  All  around  the  house  and  farm  was  in  perfect 
order,  proving  the  application  of  the  saying.  As  for  the 
view,  it  was  sufficiently  pleasant,  the  house  having  its  front 
towards  the  east,  while  its  end  windows  looked,  the  one  set 
in  the  direction  of  the  Sound,  and  the  other  in  that  of  the 
arm  of  the  sea,  which  belongs  properly  to  Peconic  Bay, 
we  believe.  All  this  water,  some  of  which  was  visible 
over  points  and  among  islands,  together  with  a  smiling  and 
fertile,  though  narrow  stretch  of  foreground,  could  not  fail 
of  making  an  agreeable  landscape. 

It  was  little,  however,  that  Deacon  Pratt  thought  of 
views,  or  beauty  of  any  sort,  as  the  mare  reached  the  open 
grate  of  his  own  abode.  Mary  was  standing  in  the  stoop, 
or  porch  of  the  house,  and  appeared  to  be  anxiously  await 
ing  her  uncle's  return.  The  latter  gave  the  reins  to  a 
black,  one  who  was  no  longer  a  slave,  but  who  was  a  de 
scendant  of  some  of  the  ancient  slaves  of  the  Pratts,  and  in 
that  character  consented  still  to  dawdle  about  the  place, 
working  for  half  price.  On  alighting,  the  uncle  approached 
the  niece  with  somewhat  of  interest  in  his  manner. 

"  Well,  Mary,"  said  the  former,  "  how  does  he  get  on, 
now?" 

"  Oh !  my  dear  sir  he  cannot  possibly  live,  I  think,  and 


THE    SEA    LIONS.  21 

1  do  most  earnestly  entreat  that  you  will  let  me  send  across 
to  the  Harbour  for  Dr.  Sage." 

By  the  Harbour  was  meant  Sag's,  and  the  physician 
named  was  one  of  merited  celebrity  in  old  Suffolk.  So 
healthy  was  the  country  in  general,  and  so  simple  were  the 
habits  of  the  people,  that  neither  lawyer  nor  physician  was 
to  be  found  in  every  hamlet,  as  is  the  case  to-day.  Both 
were  to  be  had  at  Riverhead,  as  well  as  at  Sag  Harbour ; 
but,  if  a  man  called  out  "  Squire,"  or  "  Doctor,"  in  the 
highways  of  Suffolk,  sixteen  men  did  not  turn  round  to 
reply,  as  is  said  to  be  the  case  in  other  regions ;  one  half 
answering  to  the  one  appellation,  and  the  second  half  to 
the  other.  The  deacon  had  two  objections  to  yielding  to 
his  niece's  earnest  request ;  the  expense  being  one,  though 
it  was  not,  in  this  instance,  the  greatest ;  there  was  another 
reason  that  he  kept  to  himself,  but  which  will  appear  as 
our  narrative  proceeds. 

A  few  weeks  previously  to  the  Sunday  in  question,  a 
sea-going  vessel,  inward  bound,  had  brought  up  in  Gardi 
ner's  Bay,  which  is  a  usual  anchorage  for  all  sorts  of  craft. 
A  worn-out  and  battered  seaman  had  been  put  ashore  on 
Oyster  Pond,  by  a  boat  from  this  vessel,  which  sailed  to 
the  westward  soon  after,  proceeding  most  probably  to  New 
York.  The  stranger  was  not  only  well  advanced  in  life, 
but  he  was  obviously  wasting  away  with  disease. 

The  account  given  of  himself  by  this  seaman  was  suffi 
ciently  explicit.  He  was  born  on  Martha's  Vineyard,  but,  as 
is  customary  with  the  boys  of  that  island,  he  had  left  home 
in  his  twelfth  year,  and  had  now  been  absent  from  the 
place  of  his  birth  a  little  more  than  half  a  century.  Con 
scious  of  the  decay  which  beset  him,  and  fully  convinced 
that  his  days  were  few  and  numbered,  the  seaman,  who 
called  himself  Tom  Daggett,  had  felt  a  desire  to  close  his 
eyes  in  the  place  where  they  had  first  been  opened  to  the 
light  of  day.  He  had  persuaded  the  commander  of  the 
craft  mentioned,  to  bring  him  from  the  West  Indies,  and 
to  put  him  ashore  as  related,  the  Vineyard  being  only  a 
hundred  miles  or  so  to  the  eastward  of  Oyster  Pond  Point. 
He  trusted  to  luck  to  give  him  the  necessary  opportunity 
of  overcoming  these  last  hundred  miles. 

Daggett  was  poor,  as  he  admitted,  as  well  as  friendless 


22  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

and  unknown.  He  had  with  him,  nevertheless,  a  substan 
tial  sea-chest,  one  of  those  that  the  sailors  of  that  day  uni 
formly  used  in  merchant-vessels,  a  man-of-war  compelling 
them  to  carry  their  clothes  in  bags,  for  the  convenience  of 
compact  stowage.  The  chest  of  Daggett,  however,  was  a 
regular  inmate  of  the  forecastle,  and,  from  its  appearance, 
had  made  almost  as  many  voyages  as  its  owner.  The  last, 
indeed,  was  heard  to  say  that  he  had  succeeded  in  saving 
it  from  no  less  than  three  shipwrecks.  It  was  a  reasonably 
heavy  chest,  though  its  contents,  when  opened,  did  not 
seem  to  be  of  any  very  great  value. 

A  few  hours  after  landing,  this  man  had  made  a  bargain 
with  a  middle-aged  widow,  in  very  humble  circumstances, 
and  who  dwelt  quite  near  to  the  residence  of  Deacon  Pratt, 
to  receive  him  as  a  temporary  inmate ;  or,  until  he  could  get 
a  "  chance  across  to  the  Vineyard."  At  first,  Daggett 
kept  about,  and  was  much  in  the  open  air.  While  able  to 
walk,  he  met  the  deacon,  and  singular,  nay,  unaccountable 
as  it  seemed  to  the  niece,  the  uncle  soon  contracted  a  spe 
cies  of  friendship  for,  not  to  say  intimacy  with,  this  stran 
ger.  In  the  first  place,  the  deacon  was  a  little  particular 
in  not  having  intimates  among  the  necessitous,  and  the 
Widow  White  soon  let  it  be  known  that  her  guest  had  not 
even  a  "  red  cent."  He  had  chattels,  however,  that  were 
of  some  estimation  among  seamen ;  and  Roswell  Gardiner, 
or  "  Gar'ner,"  as  he  was  called,  the  young  seaman  par  ex~ 
cellence  of  the  Point,  one  who  had  been  not  only  a  whaling, 
but  who  had  also  been  a  sealing,  and  who  at  that  moment 
was  on  board  the  deacon's  schooner,  in  the  capacity  of 
master,  had  been  applied  to  for  advice  and  assistance.  By 
the  agency  of  Mr.  Gar'ner,  as  the  young  mate  was  then 
termed,  sundry  palms,  sets  of  sail-needles,  a  fid  or  two, 
and  various  other  similar  articles,  that  obviously  could  no 
longer  be  of  any  use  to  Daggett,  were  sent  across  to  the 
*•  Harbour,'  and  disposed  of  there,  to  advantage,  among  the 
many  seamen  of  the  port.  By  these  means  the  stranger 
was,  for  a  few  weeks,  enabled  to  pay  his  way,  the  board 
he  got  being  both  poor  and  cheap. 

A  much  better  result  attended  this  intercourse  with 
Gardiner,  than  that  of  raising  the  worn-out  seaman's  im 
mediate  wayg  and  means.  Between  Mary  Pratt  and  RO&- 


THE    SEA    LIONS.  23 

well  Gardiner  there  existed  an  intimacy  of  long  standing 
for  their  years,  as  well  as  of  some  peculiar  features,  to 
which  there  will  be  occasion  to  advert  hereafter.  Mary 
was  the  very  soul  of  charity  in  all  its  significations,  and 
this  Gardiner  knew.  When,  therefore,  Daggett  became 
really  necessitous,  in  the  way  of  comforts  that  even  money 
could  not  command  beneath  the  roof  of  the  Widow  White, 
the  young  man  let  the  fact  be  known  to  the  deacon's  niece, 
who  immediately  provided  sundry  delicacies  that  were  ac 
ceptable  to  the  palate  of  even  disease.  As  for  her  uncle, 
nothing  was  at  first  said  to  him  on  the  subject.  Although 
his  intimacy  with  Daggett  went  on  increasing,  and  they 
were  daily  more  and  more  together,  in  long  and  secret 
conference,  not  a  suggestion  was  ever  made  by  the  deacon 
in  the  way  of  contributing  to  his  new  friend's  comforts. 
To  own  the  truth,  to  give  was  the  last  idea  that  ever 
occurred  to  this  man's  thoughts. 

Mary  Pratt  was  observant,  and  of  a  mind  so  constituted, 
that  its  observations  usually  led  her  to  safe  and  accurate 
deductions.  Great  was  the  surprise  of  all  on  the  Point 
when  it  became  known  that  Deacon  Pratt  had  purchased 
and  put  into  the  water,  the  new  sea-going  craft  that  was 
building  on  speculation,  at  Southold.  Not  only  had  he 
done  this,  but  he  had  actually  bought  some  half-worn  cop 
per,  and  had  it  placed  on  the  schooner's  bottom,  as  high 
as  the  bends,  ere  he  had  her  launched.  While  the  whole 
neighbourhood  was  "  exercised"  with  conjectures  on  the 
motive  which  could  induce  the  deacon  to  become  a  ship 
owner  in  his  age,  Mary  did  not  fail  to  impute  it  to  some 
secret  but  powerful  influence,  that  the  sick  stranger  had 
obtained  over  him.  He  now  spent  nearly  half  his  time  in 
private  communications  with  Daggett ;  and,  on  more  than 
one  occasion,  when  the  niece  had  taken  some  light  article 
of  food  over  for  the  use  of  the  last,  she  found  him  and  her 
uncle  examining  one  or  two  dirty  and  well-worn  charts  of 
the  ocean.  As  she  entered,  the  conversation  invariably 
was  changed ;  nor  was  Mrs.  White  ever  permitted  to  be 
present  at  one  of  these  secret  conferences. 

Not  only  was  the  schooner  purchased,  and  coppered, 
and  launched,  and  preparations  made  to  fit  her  for  sea, 
but  "Young  Gar'ner"  was  appointed  to  command  her! 


24  THESEALIONS. 

As  respects  Roswell  Gardiner,  or  "  Gar'ner,"  as  it  would 
be  almost  thought  a  breach  of  decorum,  in  Suffolk,  not  to 
call  him,  there  was  no  mystery.  Six-and-twenty  years  be 
fore  the  opening  of  our  legend,  he  had  been  born  on  Oyster 
Pond  itself,  and  of  one  of  its  best  families.  Indeed,  he 
was  known  to  be  a  descendant  of  Lyon  Gardiner,  that  en 
gineer  who  had  been  sent  to  the  settlement  of  the  lords 
Saye  and  Seal,  and  Brook,  since  called  Saybrook,  near 
two  centuries  before,  to  lay  out  a  town  and  a  fort.  This 
Lyon  Gardiner  had  purchased  of  the  Indians  the  island  in 
that  neighbourhood,  which  still  bears  his  name.  This  es 
tablishment  on  the  island  was  made  in  1639 ;  and  now,  at 
an  interval  of  two  hundred  and  nine  years,  it  is  in  posses 
sion  of  its  ninth  owner,  all  having  been  of  the  name  and 
blood  of  its  original  patentee.  This  is  great  antiquity  for 
America,  which,  while  it  has  produced  many  families  of 
greater  wealth,  and  renown,  and  importance,  than  that  of 
the  Gardiners,  has  seldom  produced  any  of  more  permanent 
local  respectability.  This  is  a  feature  in  society  that,  we 
so  much  love  to  see,  and  which  is  so  much  endangered  by 
the  uncertain  and  migratory  habits  of  the  people,  that  we 
pause  a  moment  to  record  this  instance  of  stability,  so 
pleasing  and  so  commendable,  in  an  age  and  country  of 
changes. 

The  descendants  of  any  family  of  two  centuries  standing, 
will,  as  a  matter  of  course,  be  numerous.  There  are  excep 
tions,  certainly;  but  such  is  the  rule.  Thus  is  it  with 
Lyon  Gardiner,  and  his  progeny,  who  are  now  to  be  num 
bered  in  scores,  including  persons  in  all  classes  of  life, 
though  it  carries  with  it  a  stamp  of  caste  to  be  known  in 
Suffolk  as  having  come  direct  from  the  loins  of  old  Lyon 
Gardiner.  Roswell,  of  that  name,  if  not  of  that  Ilk,  the 
island  then  being  the  sole  property  of  David  Johnson  Gar 
diner,  the  predecessor  and  brother  of  its  present  proprietor, 
was  allowed  to  have  this  claim,  though  it  would  exceed  our 
genealogical  knowledge  to  point  out  the  precise  line  by 
which  this  descent  was  claimed.  Young  Roswell  was  of 
respectable  blood  on  both  sides,  without  being  very  bril 
liantly  connected,  or  rich.  On  the  contrary,  early  left  an 
orphan,  fatherless  and  motherless,  as  was  the  case  with 
Mary  Pratt,  he  had  been  taken  'jom  a  country  academy 


THE    SEA    LIONS.  25 

when  only  fifteen,  and  sent  to  sea,  that  he  might  make  his 
own  way  in  the  world.  Hitherto,  his  success  had  not  been 
of  a  very  flattering  character.  He  had  risen,  notwithstand 
ing,  to  be  the  chief  mate  of  a  whaler,  and  bore  an  excellent 
reputation  among  the  people  of  Suffolk.  Had  it  only  been 
a  year  or  two  later,  when  speculation  took  hold  of  the 
whaling  business  in  a  larger  way,  he  would  not  have  had 
the  least  difficulty  in  obtaining  a  ship.  As  it  was,  however, 
great  was  his  delight  when  Deacon  Pratt  engaged  him  as 
master  of  the  new  schooner,  which  had  been  already 
named  the  "Sea  Lion"  —  or  "Sea  Lyon,"  as  Roswell 
sometimes  affected  to  spell  the  word,  in  honour  of  his  old 
progenitor,  the  engineer. 

Mary  Pratt  had  noted  all  these  proceedings,  partly  with 
pain,  partly  with  pleasure,  but  always  with  great  interest. 
It  pained  her  to  find  her  uncle,  in  the  decline  of  life,  en 
gaging  in  a  business  about  which  he  knew  nothing.  It 
pained  her,  still  more,  to  see  one  whom  she  loved  from 
habit,  if  not  from  moral  sympathies,  wasting  the  few  hours 
that  remained  for  preparing  for  the  last  great  change,  in 
attempts  to  increase  possessions  that  were  already  much 
more  than  sufficient  for  his  wants.  This  consideration,  in 
particular,  deeply  grieved  Mary  Pratt;  for  she  was  pro 
foundly  pious,  with  a  conscience  that  was  so  sensitive  as 
materially  to  interfere  with  her  happiness,  as  will  presently 
be  shown,  while  her  uncle  was  merely  a  deacon.  It  is  one 
thing  to  be  a  deacon,  and  another  to  be  devoted  to  the  love 
of  God,  and  to  that  love  of  our  species  which  we  are  told 
is  the  consequence  of  a  love  of  the  Deity.  The  two  are  not 
incompatible;  neither  are  they  identical.  This  Mary  had 
been  made  to  see,  in  spite  of  all  her  wishes  to  be  blind  as 
respects  the  particular  subject  from  whom  she  had  learned 
the  unpleasant  lesson.  The  pleasure  felt  by  our  heroine, 
for  such  we  now  announce  Mary  Pratt  to  be,  was  derived 
from  the  preferment  bestowed  on  Roswell  Gardiner.  She 
had  many  a  palpitation  of  the  heart  when  she  heard  of  his 
good  conduct  as  a  seaman,  as  she  always  did  whenever  she 
heard  his  professional  career  alluded  to  at  all.  On  this 
point,  Roswell  was  without  spot,  as  all  Suffolk  knew  and 
confessed.  On  Oyster  Pond,  he  was  regarded  as  a  species 
of  sea  lion  himself,  so  numerous  and  so  exciting  were  the 


26  THESEALIONS. 

incidents  that  were  related  of  his  prowess  among  the  whales, 
But,  there  was  a  dark  cloud  before  all  these  glories,  in  tha 
eyes  of  Mary  Pratt,  which  for  two  years  had  disinclined 
her  to  listen  to  the  young  man's  tale  of  love,  which  had 
induced  her  to  decline  accepting  a  hand  that  had  now  been 
offered  to  her,  with  a  seaman's  ardour,  a  seaman's  frank 
ness,  and  a  seaman's  sincerity,  some  twenty  times  at  least, 
which  had  induced  her  to  struggle  severely  with  her  own 
heart,  which  she  had  long  found  to  be  a  powerful  ally  of 
her  suitor.  That  cloud  came  from  a  species  of  infidelity 
that  is  getting  to  be  so  widely  spread  in  America  as  no 
longer  to  work  in  secret,  but  which  lifts  its  head  boldly 
among  us,  claiming  openly  to  belong  to  one  of  the  numer 
ous  sects  of  the  land.  Mary  had  reason  to  think  that  Ros- 
well  Gardiner  denied  the  divinity  of  Christ,  while  he  pro 
fessed  to  honour  and  defer  to  him  as  a  man  far  elevated 
above  all  other  men,  and  as  one  whose  blood  had  purchased 
the  redemption  of  his  race ! 

We  will  take  this  occasion  to  say  that  our  legend  is  not 
polemical  in  any  sense,  and  that  we  have  no  intention  to 
enter  into  discussions  or  arguments  connected  with  this 
subject,  beyond  those  that  we  may  conceive  to  be  neces 
sary  to  illustrate  the  picture  which  it  is  our  real  aim  to 
draw  —  that  of  a  confiding,  affectionate,  nay,  devoted  wo 
man's  heart,  in  conflict  with  a  deep  sense  of  religious 
duty. 

Still,  Mary  rejoiced  that  Roswell  Gardiner  was  to  com 
mand  the  Sea  Lion.  Whither  this  little  vessel,  a  schooner 
of  about  one  hundred  and  forty  tons  measurement,  was  to 
sail,  she  had  not  the  slightest  notion ;  but,  go  where  it 
might,  her  thoughts  and  prayers  were  certain  to  accompany 
it.  These  are  woman's  means  of  exerting  influence,  and 
who  shall  presume  to  say  that  they  are  without  results,  and 
useless?  On  the  contrary,  we  believe  them  to  be  most 
efficacious ;  and  thrice  happy  is  the  man  who,  as  he  treads 
the  mazes  and  wiles  of  the  world,  goes  accompanied  by 
the  petitions  of  such  gentle  and  pure-minded  beings  at 
home,  as  seldom  think  of  approaching  the  throne  of  Grace 
without  also  thinking  of  him  and  of  his  necessities.  The 
Romanists  say,  and  say  it  rightly  too,  could  one  only  be 
lieve  in  their  efficacy,  that  the  prayers  they  offer  up  in  be- 


THESEALIONS.  27 

half  of  departed  friends,  are  of  the  most  endearing  nature ; 
but  it  would  be  difficult  to  prove  that  petitions  for  the  souls 
of  the  dead  can  demonstrate  greater  interest,  or  bind  the 
parties  more  closely  together  in  the  unity  of  love,  than 
those  that  are  constantly  offered  up  in  behalf  of  the  living. 

The  interest  that  Mary  Pratt  felt  in  Roswell's  success 
needs  little  explanation.  In  all  things  he  was  most  agree 
able  to  her,  but  in  the  one  just  mentioned.  Their  ages, 
their  social  positions,  their  habits,  their  orphan  condition, 
even  their  prejudices — and  who  that  dwells  aside  from  the 
world  is  without  them,  when  most  of  those  who  encounter 
its  collisions  still  cherish  them  so  strongly? — all  united  to 
render  them  of  interest  to  each  other.  Nor  was  Deacon 
Pratt  at  all  opposed  to  the  connection ;  on  the  contrary,  he 
appeared  rather  to  favour  it. 

The  objections  came  solely  from  Mary,  whose  heart  was 
nearly  ready  to  break  each  time  that  she  was  required  to 
urge  them.  As  for  the  uncle,  it  is  not  easy  to  say  what 
could  induce  him  to  acquiesce  in,  to  favour  indeed,  the  ad 
dresses  to  his  niece  and  nearest  relative,  of  one  who  was 
known  not  to  possess  five  hundred  dollars  in  the  world.  As 
his  opinions  on  this  subject  were  well  known  to  all  on 
Oyster  Pond,  they  had  excited  a  good  deal  of  speculation ; 
"  exercising"  the  whole  neighbourhood,  as  was  very  apt  to 
be  the  case  whenever  anything  occurred  in  the  least  out 
of  the  ordinary  track.  The  several  modes  of  reasoning 
were  something  like  these  : — 

Some  were  of  opinion  that  the  deacon  foresaw  a  success 
ful  career  to,  and  eventual  prosperity  in  the  habits  and 
enterprise  of,  the  young  mate,  and  that  he  was  willing  to 
commit  to  his  keeping,  not  only  his  niece,  I  ut  the  three 
farms,  his  "  money  at  use,"  and  certain  shares  he  was 
known  to  own  in  a  whaler  and  no  less  than  three  coasters, 
as  well  as  an  interest  in  a  store  at  Southold ;  that  is  to  say, 
to  commit  them  all  to  the  keeping  of"  young  Gar'ner"  when 
he  was  himself  dead;  for  no  one  believed  he  would  part 
with  more  than  Mary,  in  his  own  lifetime. 

Others  fancied  he  was  desirous  of  getting  the  orphan  off 

his  hands,  in  the  easiest  possible  way,  that  he  might  make 

a  bequest  of  his  whole  estate  to  the  Theological  Institution 

that  had  been  coquetting  with  him  now,  for  several  years, 

3* 


28  THE     SEA     LIONS. 

through  its  recognised  agents,  and  to  which  he  had  already 
made  the  liberal  donation  of  one  hundred  dollars.  It  was 
wel!  ascertained  that  the  agents  of  that  Institution  openly 
talked  of  getting  Deacon  Pratt  to  sit  for  his  portrait,  in  or 
der  that  it  might  be  suspended  among  those  of  others  of  its 
benefactors. 

A  third  set  reasoned  differently  from  both  the  foregoing. 
The  "  Garners"  were  a  better  family  than  the  Pratts,  and 
the  deacon  being  so  "  well  to  do,"  it  was  believed  by  these 
persons  that  he  was  disposed  to  unite  money  with  name, 
and  thus  give  to  his  family  consideration,  from  a  source 
that  was  somewhat  novel  in'its  history.  This  class  of  rea- 
soners  was  quite  small,  however,  and  mainly  consisted  of 
those  who  had  rarely  been  off  of  Oyster  Pond,  and  who 
passed  their  days  with  "  Garner's  Island"  directly  before 
their  eyes.  A  few  of  the  gossips  of  this  class  pretended  to 
say  that  their  own  young  sailor  stood  next  in  succession 
after  the  immediate  family  actually  in  possession  should  run 
out,  of  which  there  was  then  some  prospect :  and  that  the 
deacon,  sly  fellow,  knew  all  about  it !  For  this  surmise, 
to  prevent  useless  expectations  in  the  reader,  it  may  be  well 
to  say  at  once,  there  was  no  foundation  whatever,  Roswell's 
connection  with  the  owner  of  the  island  being  much  too 
remote  to  give  him  any  chance  of  succeeding  to  that  estate, 
or  to  anything  else  that  belonged  to  him. 

There  was  a  fourth  and  last  set,  among  those  who  spe 
culated  on  the  deacon's  favour  towards  "young  Gar'ner," 
and  these  were  they  who  fancied  that  the  old  man  had 
opened  his  heart  towards  the  young  couple,  and  was  dis 
posed  to  render  a  deserving  youth  and  a  beloved  niece 
happy.  This  was  the  smallest  class  of  all ;  and,  what  is  a 
little  remarkable,  it  contained  only  the  most  reckless  and 
least  virtuous  of  all  those  who  dwelt  on  Oyster  Pond.  The 
parson  of  the  parish,  or  the  Pastor  as  he  was  usually  term 
ed,  belonged  to  the  second  category,  that  good  man  being 
firmly  impressed  that  most,  if  not  all  of  Deacon  Pratt's 
worldly  effects  would  eventually  go  to  help  propagate  the 
gospel. 

Such  was  the  state  of  things  when  the  deacon  returned 
from  meeting,  as  related  in  the  opening  chapter.  At  his 
niece's  suggestion  of  sending  to  the  Harbour  for  Dr.  Sage, 


THE     SEA     LIONS.  29 

he  had  demurred,  not  only  on  account  of  the  expense,  but 
for  a  still  more  cogent  reason.  To  tell  the  truth,  he  was 
exceedingly  distrustful  of  any  one's  being  admitted  to  a 
communication  with  Daggett,  who  had  revealed  to  him 
matters  that  he  deemed  to  be  of  great  importance,  but  who 
still  retained  the  key  to  his  most  material  mystery.  Never 
theless,  decency,  to  say  nothing  of  the  influence  of  what 
"  folks  would  say,"  the  Archimedean  lever  of  all  society  of 
puritanical  origin,  exhorted  him  to  consent  to  his  niece's 
proposal. 

"  It  is  such  a  round-about  road  to  get  to  the  Harbour, 
Mary,"  the  uncle  slowly  objected,  after  a  pause. 

"  Boats  often  go  there,  and  return  in  a  few  hours." 

"Yes,  yes  —  boats;  but  I'm  not  certain  it  is  lawful  to 
work  boats  of  a  Sabbath,  child." 

"  I  believe,  sir,  it  was  deemed  lawful  to  do  good  on  the 
Lord's  day." 

"  Yes,  if  a  body  was  certain  it  would  do  any  good.  To 
be  sure,  Sage  is  a  capital  doctor — as  good  as  any  going  in 
these  parts  —  but,  half  the  time,  money  paid  for  doctor's 
stuff  is  thrown  away." 

"  Still,  I  think  it  our  duty  to  try  to  serve  a  fellow-crea 
ture  that  is  in  distress ;  and  Daggett,  I  fear,  will  not  go 
through  the  \veek,  if  indeed  he  go  through  the  night." 

"T should  be  sorry  to  have  him  die!"  exclaimed  the 
deacon,  looking  really  distressed  at  this  intelligence. 
li  Right  sorry  should  I  be,  to  have  him  die — just  yet." 

The  last  two  words  were  uttered  unconsciously,  and  in 
a  way  to  cause  the  niece  to  regret  that  they  had  been  ut 
tered  at  all.  But  they  had  come,  notwithstanding,  and  the 
deacon  saw  that  he  had  been  too  frank.  The  fault  could 
not  now  be  remedied,  and  he  was  fain  to  allow  his  words 
to  produce  their  own  effect. 

"  Die  he  will,  I  fear,  uncle,"  returned  Mary,  after  a  short 
pause ;  "  and  sorry  should  I  be  to  have  it  so  without  our 
feeling  the  consolation  of  knowing  we  had  done  all  in  our 
power  to  save  him,  or  to  serve  him." 

"  It  is  so  far  to  the  Harbour,  that  no  good  might  come 
of  a  messenger ;  and  the  money  paid  him  would  be  thrown 
away,  too." 

"I  dare  say  Roswell  Gar'ner  would  he  glad  to  go  to 


30  THESEALIONS. 

help  a  fellow-creature  who  is  suffering.  He  would  no. 
think  of  demanding  any  pay." 

"  Yes,  that  is  true.  I  will  say  this  for  Gar'ner,  that  he 
is  as  reasonable  a  young  man,  when  he  does  an  odd  job,  aa 
any  one  I  know.  I  like  to  employ  him." 

Mary  understood  this  very  well.  It  amounted  to  neither 
more  nor  less,  than  the  deacon's  perfect  consciousness  that 
the  youth  had,  again  and  again,  given  him  his  time  and 
his  services  gratuitously;  and  that  too,  more  than  once, 
under  circumstances  when  it  would  have  been  quite  proper 
that  he  should  look  for  a  remuneration.  A  slight  colour 
stole  over  the  face  of  the  niece,  as  memory  recalled  to  her 
mind  these  different  occasions.  Was  that  sensitive  blush 
owing  to  her  perceiving  the  besetting  weakness  of  one  who 
stood  in  the  light  of  a  parent  to  her,  and  towards  whom 
she  endeavoured  to  feel  the  affection  of  a  child  1  We  shall 
not  gainsay  this,  so  far  as  a  portion  of  the  feeling  which 
produced  that  blush  was  concerned ;  but,  certain  it  is,  that 
the  thought  that  Roswell  had  exerted  himself  to  oblige  her 
uncle,  obtruded  itself  somewhat  vividly  among  her  other 
recollections. 

"Well,  sir,"  the  niece  resumed,  after  another  brief 
pause,  "  we  can  send  for  Roswell,  if  you  think  it  best,  and 
ask  him  to  do  the  poor  man  this  act  of  kindness." 

"  Your  messengers  after  doctors  are  always  in  such  a 
hurry !  I  dare  say,  Gar'ner  would  think  it  necessary  to 
hire  a  horse  to  cross  Shelter  Island,  and  then  perhaps  a 
boat  to  get  across  to  the  Harbour.  If  no  boat  was  to  be 
found,  it  might  be  another  horse  to  gallop  away  round  the 
head  of  the  Bay.  Why,  five  dollars  would  scarce  meet  the 
cost  of  such  a  race  !" 

"If  five  dollars  were  needed,  Roswell  would  pay  them 
out  of  his  own  pocket,  rather  than  ask  another  to  assist 
him  in  doing  an  act  of  charity.  But,  no  horse  will  be  ne 
cessary  ;  the  whale-boat  is  at  the  wharf,  and  is  ready  for 
use,  at  any  moment." 

"  True,  1  had  forgotten  the  whale-boat.  If  that  is  home, 
the  doctor  might  be  brought  across  at  a  reasonable  rate ; 
especially  if  Gar'ner  will  volunteer.  I  dare  say  Daggett's 
effects  will  pay  the  bill  for  attendance,  since  they  have  an 
swered,  as  yet,  to  meet  the  Widow  White's  charges.  A9 


THE    SEA    LIONS.  31 

I  live,  here  comes  Gar'ner,  at  this  moment,  and  just  as  we 
want  him." 

"  I  knew  of  no  other  to  ask  to  cross  the  bays,  sir,  and 
sent  for  Roswell  before  you  returned.  Had  you  not  got 
back,  as  you  did,  I  should  have  taken  on  myself  the  duty 
of  sending  for  the  doctor." 

"  In  which  case,  girl,  you  would  have  made  yourself 
liable.  I  have  too  many  demands  on  my  means,  to  be 
scattering  dollars  broadcast.  But,  here  is  Gar'ner,  and  I 
dare  say  all  will  be  made  right." 

Gardiner  now  joined  the  uncle  and  niece,  who  had  held 
this  conversation  in  the  porch,  having  hastened  up  from 
the  schooner  the  instant  he  received  Mary's  summons.  He 
was  rewarded  by  a  kind  look  and  a  friendly  shake  of  the 
hand,  each  of  which  was  slightly  more  cordial  than  those 
that  prudent  and  thoughtful  young  woman  was  accustomed 
to  bestow  on  him.  He  saw  that  Mary  was  a  little  earnest 
in  her  manner,  arid  looked  curious,  as  well  as  interested, 
to  learn  why  he  had  been  summoned  at  all.  Sunday  was 
kept  so  rigidly  at  the  deacon's,  that  the  young  man  did  not 
dare  visit  the  house  until  after  the  sun  had  set;  the  New 
England  practice  of  commencing  the  Sabbath  of  a  Satur 
day  evening,  and  bringing  it  to  a  close  at  the  succeeding 
sunset,  prevailing  among  most  of  the  people  of  Suffolk,  the 
Episcopalians  forming  nearly  all  the  exceptions  to  the  usage. 
Sunday  evening,  consequently,  was  in  great  request  for 
visits,  it  being  the  favourite  time  for  the  young  people  to 
meet,  as  they  were  not  only  certain  to  be  unemployed,  but 
to  be  in  their  best.  Roswell  Gardiner  was  in  the  practice 
of  visiting  Mary  Pratt  on  Sunday  evenings ;  but  he  would 
almost  as  soon  think  of  desecrating  a  church,  as  think  of 
entering  the  deacon's  abode,  on  the  Sabbath,  until  after 
sunset,  or  "  sundown,"  to  use  the  familiar  Americanism 
that  is  commonly  applied  to  this  hour  of  the  day.  Here 
he  was,  now,  however,  wondering,  and  anxious  to  learn 
why  he  had  been  sent  for. 

"  Roswell,"  said  Mary,  earnestly,  slightly  colouring  again 
as  she  spoke  "  we  have  a  great  favour  to  ask.  You  know 
the  poor  old  sailor  who  has  been  staying  at  the  Widow 
White's,  this  month  or  more — he  is  now  very  low ;  so  low, 
we  think  he  ought  to  have  better  advice  than  can  be  found 


32  THE     SEA    LIONS. 

on  Oyster  Pond,  and  we  wish  to  get  Dr.  Sage  over  from 
the  Harbour.  How  to  do  it  has  been  the  question,  when 
[  thought  of  you.  If  you  could  take  the  whale-boat  and 
go  across,  the  poor  man  might  have  the  benefit  of  the  doc 
tor's  advice  in  the  course  of  a  few  hours." 

"  Yes,"  put  in  the  uncle,  "  and  I  shall  charge  nothing 
for  the  use  of  the  boat;  so  that,  if  you  volunteer,  Gar'ner, 
it  will  leave  so  much  towards  settling  up  the  man's  ac 
counts,  when  settling  day  comes." 

Roswell  Gardiner  understood  both  uncle  and  niece  per 
fectly.  The  intense  selfishness  of  the  first  was  no  more  a 
secret  to  him  than  was  the  entire  disinterestedness  of  the 
last.  He  gazed  a  moment,  in  fervent  admiration,  at  Mary; 
then  he  turned  to  the  deacon,  and  professed  his  readiness 
to  "  volunteer."  Knowing  the  man  so  well,  he  took  care 
distinctly  to  express  the  word,  so  as  to  put  the  mind  of  this 
votary  of  Mammon  at  ease. 

"Gar'ner  will  volunteer,  then,"  rejoined  the  uncle,  "  and 
I  shall  charge  nothing  for  the  use  of  the  boat.  This  is 
'  doing  as  we  would  be  done  by,'  and  is  all  right,  consider 
ing  that  Daggett  is  sick  and  among  strangers.  The  wind 
is  fair,  or  nearly  fair,  to  go  and  to  come  back,  and  you  '11 
make  a  short  trip  of  it.  Yes,  it  will  cost  nothing,  and  may 
do  the  poor  man  good." 

"Now,  go  at  once,  Roswell,"  said  Mary,  in  an  entreat 
ing  manner ;  "  and  show  the  same  skill  in  managing  the 
boat  that  you  did  the  day  you  won  the  race  against  the 
Harbour  oarsmen." 

"I  will  do  all  a  man  can,  to  oblige  you,  Mary,  as  well 
as  to  serve  the  sick.  If  Dr.  Sage  should  not  be  at  home, 
am  I  to  look  for  another  physician,  Mr.  Pratt?" 

"  Sage  must  be  at  home — we  can  employ  no  other.  Your 
old,  long-established  physicians  understand  how  to  consider 
practice,  and  don't  make  mistakes — by  the  way,  Gar'ner, 
you  needn't  mention  my  name  in  the  business,  at  all.  Just 
say  that  a  sick  man,  at  the  Widow  White's,  needs  his  ser 
vices,  and  that  you  had  volunteered  to  take  him  across. 
That  will  bring  him — I  know  the  man." 

Again  Gardiner  understood  what  the  deacon  meant 
He  was  just  as  desirous  of  not  paying  the  physician  as  of 
not  paying  the  messenger.  Mary  understood  him,  too 


^THE     SEA     LIONS.  33 

and,  with  a  face  still  more  sad  than  anxiety  had  previously 
made  it,  she  walked  into  the  house,  leaving  her  uncle  and 
lover  in  the  porch.  After  a  few  more  injunctions  from  the 
former,  in  the  way  of  prudent  precaution,  the  latter  de 
parted,  hurrying  down  to  the  water-side,  in  order  to  take 
to  the  boat. 


CHAPTER  III. 

"  All  that  glisters  is  not  gold, 
Often  have  you  heard  that  told ; 
Many  a  man  his  life  hath  sold, 
But  my  outside  to  behold." 

Merchant  of  Venice. 

No  sooner  was  Deacon  Pratt  left  alone,  than  he  hastened 
to  the  humble  dwelling  of  the  Widow  White.  The  disease 
of  Daggett  was  a  general  decay  that  was  not  attended  with 
much  suffering.  He  was  now  seated  in  a  homely  arm 
chair,  and  was  able  to  converse.  He  was  not  aware,  in 
deed,  of  the  real  danger  of  his  case,  and  still  had  hopes  of 
surviving  many  years.  The  deacon  came  in  at  the  door, 
just  as  the  widow  had  passed  through  it,  on  her  way  to 
visit  another  crone,  who  lived  hard  by,  and  with  whom  she 
was  in  the  constant  habit  of  consulting.  She  had  seen  the 
deacon  in  the  distance,  and  took  that  occasion  to  run  across 
the  road,  having  a  sort  of  instinctive  notion  that  her  pre 
sence  was  not  required  wheji  the  two  men  conferred  to 
gether.  What  was  the  subject  of  their  frequent  private 
communications,  the  Widow  White  did  not  exactly  know; 
but  what  she  imagined,  will  in  part  appear  in  her  discourse 
with  her  neighbour,  the  Widow  Stone. 

4<  Here 's  the  deacon,  ag'in  !"  cried  the  Widow  White, 
as  she  bolted  hurriedly  into  her  friend's  presence.  "  This 
makes  the  third  time  he  has  been  at  my  house  since  yes 
terday  morning.  What  can  he  mean?" 

"  Oh !  I  dare  say,  Betsy,  he  means  no  more  than  to 
visit  the  sick,  as  he  pretends  is  the  reason  of  his  many 


34  THESEALIONS. 

«  You  forget  it  is  Sabba'  day  !"  added  the  Widow  White, 
with  emphasis. 

"  The  better  day,  the  better  deed,  Betsy." 

"  I  know  that ;  but  it's  dreadful  often  for  a  man  to  visit 
the  sick — three  times  in  twenty-four  hours !" 

"  Yes ;  't  would  have  been  more  nat'ral  for  a  woman,  a 
body  must  own,"  returned  the  Widow  Stone,  a  little  drily. 
u  Had  the  deacon  been  a  woman,  I  dare  say,  Betsy,  you 
ivould  not  have  thought  so  much  of  his  visits." 

"  I  should  think  nothing  of  them  at  all,"  rejoined  the 
sister  widow,  innocently  enough.  "  But  it  is  dreadful  odd 
in  a  man  to  be  visiting  about  among  the  sick  so  much — 
and  he  a  deacon  of  the  meeting !" 

"  Yes,  it  is  not  as  common  as  it  might  be,  particularly 
among  deacons.  But,  come  in,  Betsy,  and  I  will  show 
you  the  text  from  which  minister  preached  this  morning. 
It's  well  worth  attending  to,  for  it  touches  on  our  forlorn 
state."  Hereupon,  the  two  relicts  entered  an  inner  room, 
where  we  shall  leave  them  to  discuss  the  merits  of  the  ser 
mon,  interrupted  by  many  protestations  on  the  part  of  the 
Widow  White,  concerning  the  "  dreadful"  character  of 
Deacon  Pratt's  many  visits  to  her  cottage,  "  Sabba5  days" 
as  well  as  week  days. 

In  the  meanwhile,  the  interview  between  the  deacon, 
himself,  and  the  sick  mariner,  had  its  course.  After  the 
first  salutations,  and  the  usual  inquiries,  the  visiter,  with 
some  parade  of  manner,  alluded  to  the  fact  that  he  had 
sent  for  a  physician  for  the  other's  benefit. 

"  I  did  it  of  my  own  head,"  added  the  deacon  ;  "  or,  I 
might  better  say,  of  my  own  heart.  It  was  unpleasant  to 
me  to  witness  your  sufferings,  without  doing  something  to 
alleviate  them.  To  alleviate  sorrow,  and  pain,  and  the 
throes  of  conscience,  is  one  of  the  most  pleasant  of  all  the 
Christian  offices.  Yes,  I  have  sent  young  Gar'ner  across 
the  bays,  to  the  Harbour ;  and  three  or  four  hours  hence 
we  may  look  for  him  back,  with  Dr.  Sage  in  his  boat." 

' '  I  only  hope  I  shall  have  the  means  to  pay  for  all  this 
expense  and  trouble,  deacon,"  returned  Daggett,  in  a  sort 
of  doubting  way,  that,  for  a  moment,  rendered  his  friend 
exceedingly  uncomfortable.  "  Go,  I  know  I  must,  sooner 
or  later ;  but  could  I  only  live  to  get  to  the  Vineyard, 


THESEALIONS.  35 

t  would  be  found  that  my  share  of  the  old  homestead  would 
make  up  for  all  my  wants.  I  may  live  to  see  the  end  of 
the  other  business." 

Among  the  other  tales  of  Daggett,  was  one  which  said 
that  he  had  never  yet  received  his  share  of  his  father's  pro 
perty  ;  an  account  that  was  true  enough,  though  the  truth 
might  have  shown  that  the  old  man  had  left  nothing  worth 
dividing.  He  had  been  a  common  mariner,  like  the  son, 
and  had  left  behind  him  a  common  mariner's  estate.  The 
deacon  mused  a  moment,  and  then  he  took  an  occasion  to 
advert  to  the  subject  that  had  now  been  uppermost  in  his 
thoughts  ever  since  he  had  been  in  the  habit  of  holding 
secret  conferences  with  the  sick  man.  What  that  subject 
was,  will  appear  in  the  course  of  the  conversation  that 
ensued. 

"  Have  you  thought  of  the  chart,  Daggett,"  asked  the 
deacon,  "  and  given  an  eye  to  that  journal?" 

"  Both,  sir.  Your  kindness  to  me  has  been  so  great,  that 
I  am  not  a  man  apt  to  forget  it." 

"  I  wish  you  would  show  me,  yourself,  the  precise  places 
on  the  chart,  where  them  islands  are  to  be  found.  There 
is  nothing  like  seeing  a  thing  with  one's  own  eyes." 

"  You  forget  my  oath,  deacon  Pratt.  Every  man  on  us 
took  his  bible  oath  not  to  point  out  the  position  of  the 
islands,  until  a'ter  the  year  1820.  Then,  each  and  all  on 
us  is  at  liberty  to  do  as  he  pleases.  But,  the  chart  is  in 
my  chest,  and  not  only  the  islands,  but  the  key,  is  so  plainly 
laid  down,  that  any  mariner  could  find  'em.  With  that 
chest,  however,  I  cannot  part  so  long  as  I  live.  Get  me 
well,  and  I  will  sail  in  the  Sea  Lion,  and  tell  your  captain 
Gar'ner  all  he  will  have  occasion  to  know.  The  man's 
fortune  will  be  made  who  first  gets  to  either  of  them  places." 

"  Yes,  I  can  imagine  that,  easy  enough,  from  your  ac 
counts,  Daggett  —  but,  how  am  I  to  be  certain  that  some 
other  vessel  will  not  get  the  start  of  me?" 

"  Because  the  secret  is  now  my  own.  There  was  but 
seven  on  us,  in  that  brig,  all  told.  Of  them  seven,  four 
died  at  the  islands  of  the  fever,  homeward  bound;  and  of 
the  other  three,  the  captain  was  drowned  in  the  squall  I 
told  you  of,  when  he  was  washed  overboard.  That  left 
only  Jack  Thompson  and  me ;  and  Jack,  I  think,  must  be 
4 


36  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

the  very  man  whose  death  I  see'd,  six  months  since,  as  be 
ing  killed  by  a  whale  on  the  False  Banks." 

"  Jack  Thompson  is  so  common  a  name,  a  body  nevef 
knows.  Besides,  if  he  was  killed  by  that  whale,  he  may 
have  told  the  secret  to  a  dozen  before  the  accident." 

"  There's  his  oath  ag'in  it.  Jack  was  sworn,  as  well  aa 
all  on  us,  and  he  was  a  man  likely  to  stand  by  what  he 
swore  to.  This  was  none  of  your  custom-house  oaths,  of 
which  a  chap  might  take  a  dozen  of  a  morning,  and  all 
should  be  false ;  but  it  was  an  oath  that  put  a  seaman  on 
his  honour,  since  it  was  a  good-fellowship  affair,  all  round." 

Deacon  Pratt  did  not  tell  Daggett  that  Thompson  might 
have  as  good  reasons  for  disregarding  the  oath  as  he  had 
himself;  but  he  thought  it.  These  are  things  that  no  wise 
man  utters  on  such  occasions;  and  this  opinion  touching 
the  equality  of  the  obligation  of  that  oath  was  one  of  them. 

"  There  is  another  hold  upon  Jack,"  continued  Daggett, 
after  reflecting  a  moment.  "  He  never  could  make  any 
fist  of  latitude  and  longitude  at  all,  and  he  kept  no  journal. 
Now,  should  he  get  it  wrong,  he  and  his  friends  might 
hunt  a  year  without  finding  either  of  the  places." 

"  You  think  there  was  no  mistake  in  the  pirate's  account 
of  that  key,  arid  of  the  buried  treasure?"  asked  the  deacon, 
anxiously. 

**  I  would  swear  to  the  truth  of  what  he  said,  as  freely  as 
if  I  had  seen  the  box  myself.  They  was  necessitated,  as 
you  may  suppose,  or  they  never  would  have  left  so  much 
gold,  in  sich  an  uninhabited  place;  but  leave  it  they  did, 
on  the  word  of  a  dying  man." 

"Dying? — You  mean  the  pirate,  I  suppose?" 

"  To  be  sure  I  do.  We  was  shut  up  in  the  same  prison, 
and  we  talked  the  matter  over  at  least  twenty  times,  before 
he  was  swung  off.  When  they  was  satisfied  I  had  nothing 
to  do  with  the  pirates,  I  was  cleared  ;  and  I  was  on  my  way 
to  the  Vineyard,  to  get  some  craft  or  other,  to  go  a'ter 
these  two  treasures  (for  one  is  just  as  much  a  treasure  as 
t'other)  when  I  was  put  ashore  here.  It's  much  the  same 
to  me,  whether  the  craft  sails  from  Oyster  Pond  or  from 
the  Vineyard." 

"  Of  course.  Well,  as  much  to  oblige  you,  and  to  put 
your  mind  at  rest,  as  anything  else,  1  've  bought  this  Sea 


THESEALIONS.  37 

Lion,  and  engaged  young  Roswell  Gar'ner  to  go  out  in  her, 
as  her  master.  She'll  be  ready  to  sail  in  a  fortnight,  and, 
if  things  turn  out  as  you  say,  a  good  voyage  will  she  make. 
All  interested  in  her  will  have  reason  to  rejoice.  I  see  but 
one  thing  needful  just  now,  and  that  is  that  you  should  give 
me  the  chart  at  once,  in  order  that  I  may  study  it  well,  be 
fore  the  schooner  sails." 

"  Do  you  mean  to  make  the  v'y'ge  yourself,  deacon  ?" 
asked  Daggett,  in  some  surprise. 

"  Not  in  person,  certainly,"  was  the  answer.  "  1  'm 
getting  somewhat  too  old  to  leave  home  for  so  long  a  time; 
and,  though  born  and  brought  up  in  sight  of  salt-water, 
I  've  never  tried  it  beyond  a  trip  to  York,  or  one  to  Boston. 
Still,  I  shall  have  my  property  in  the  adventure,  and  it's 
nat'ral  to  keep  an  eye  on  that.  Now,  the  chart  well  studied 
before-hand  would  be  much  more  useful,  it  seems  to  me, 
than  it  can  possibly  be,  if  taken  up  at  a  late  hour." 

"  There  will  be  time  enough  for  captain  Gar'ner  to  over 
haul  his  chart  well,  afore  he  reaches  either  of  his  ports," 
returned  the  mariner,  evasively.  "If  I  sail  with  him,  as  I 
suppose  I  must,  nothing  will  be  easier  than  for  me  to  give 
all  the  courses  and  distances." 

This  reply  produced  a  long  and  brooding  silence.  By 
this  time,  the  reader  will  have  got  a  clue  to  the  nature  of 
the  secret  that  was  discussed  so  much,  and  so  often,  be 
tween  these  two  men.  Daggett,  finding  himself  sick,  poor, 
and  friendless,  among  strangers,  had  early  cast  about  him 
for  the  means  of  obtaining  an  interest  with  those  who 
might  serve  him.  He  had  soon  got  an  insight  into  the 
character  of  Deacon  Pratt,  from  the  passing  remarks  of  the 
Widow  White,  who  was  induced  to  allude  to  the  uncle,  in 
consequence  of  the  charitable  visits  of  the  niece.  One  day, 
when  matters  appeared  to  be  at  a  very  low  ebb  with  him, 
and  shortly  after  he  had  been  put  ashore,  the  sick  mariner 
requested  an  interview  with  the  deacon  himself.  The  re 
quest  had  been  reluctantly  granted ;  but,  during  the  visit, 
Daggett  had  managed  so  well  to  whet  his  visitor's  appetite 
for  gain,  that  henceforth  there  was  no  trouble  in  procuring 
the  deacon's  company.  Little  by  little  had  Daggett  let  out 
his  facts,  always  keeping  enough  in  reserve  to  render  him 
self  necessary,  until  he  had  got  his  new  acquaintance  in 


38  THESEALIONS. 

the  highest  state  of  feverish  excitement.  The  schooner 
was  purchased,  and  all  the  arrangements  necessary  to  hel 
outfit  were  pressed  forward  as  fast  as  prudence  would  at 
all  allow.  The  chart,  and  the  latitude  and  longitude,  were 
the  circumstances  over  which  Daggett  fetained  the  control 
These  he  kept  to  himself,  though  he  averred  that  he  had 
laid  down  on  the  charts  that  were  in  his  chest  the  two  im 
portant  points  which  had  been  the  subjects  of  his  commu 
nications. 

Although  this  man  had  been  wily  in  making  his  revela 
tions,  and  had  chosen  his  confidant  with  caution  and  saga 
city,  most  of  that  which  he  related  was  true.  He  had 
belonged  to  a  sealer  that  had  been  in  a  very  high  southern 
latitude,  where  it  had  made  some  very  important  disco 
veries,  touching  the  animals  that  formed  the  objects  of  its 
search.  It  was  possible  to  fill  a  vessel  in  those  islands  in  a 
few  weeks ;  and  the  master  of  the  sealer,  Daggett  having 
been  his  mate,  had  made  all  his  people  swear  on  their 
"  bible  oaths"  not  to  reveal  the  facts,  except  under  pre 
scribed  circumstances.  His  own  vessel  was  full  when  he 
made  the  discoveries,  but  misfortune  befel  her  on  her 
homeward-bound  passage,  until  she  was  herself  totally  lost 
in  the  West  Indies,  and  that  in  a  part  of  the  ocean  where 
she  had  no  business  to  be. 

In  consequence  of  these  several  calamities,  Daggett  and 
one  more  man  were  the  sole  living  depositories  of  the  im 
portant  information.  These  men  separated,  and,  as  stated, 
Daggett  had  reason  to  think  that  his  former  shipmate  had 
been  recently  killed  by  a  whale.  The  life  and  movements 
of  a  sailor  are  usually  as  eccentric  as  the  career  of  a  comet. 
After  the  loss  of  the  sealing-vessel,  Daggett  remained  in  the 
West  Indies  and  on  the  Spanish  Main  for  some  time,  unti^ 
falling  into  evil  company  he  was  imprisoned  on  a  charge 
of  piracy,  in  company  with  one  who  better  deserved  the 
imputation.  While  in  the  same  cell,  the  pirate  had  made  a 
relation  to  Daggett  of  all  the  incidents  of  a  very  eventful 
life.  Among  other  things  revealed  was  the  fact  that,  on  a 
certain  occasion,  he  and  two  others  had  deposited  a  very 
considerable  amount  of  treasure  on  a  key  that  he  described 
very  minutely,  and  which  he  now  bestowed  on  Daggett  as 
some  compensation  for  his  present  unmer  ted  sufferings, 


THESEALIONS.  39 

his  companions  having  both  been  drowned  by  the  upsetting 
of  their  boat  on  the  return  from  the  key  in  question.  Sub 
sequently,  this  pirate  had  been  executed,  and  Daggett 
liberated.  He  was  not  able  to  get  to  the  key  without 
making  friends  and  confidants  on  whom  he  could  rely,  and 
he  was  actually  making  the  best  of  his  way  to  Martha's 
Vineyard  with  that  intent,  when  put  ashore  on  Oyster 
Pond.  In  most  of  that  which  this  man  had  related  to  the 
deacon,  therefore,  he  had  told  the  truth,  though  it  was  the 
truth  embellished,  as  is  so  apt  to  be  the  case  with  men  of 
vulgar  minds.  He  might  have  been  misled  by  the  narrative 
of  the  pirate,  but  it  was  his  own  opinion  that  he  had  not 
been.  The  man  was  a  Scot,  prudent,  wary,  and  sagacious; 
and  in  the  revelations  he  made  he  appeared  to  be  governed 
by  a  conviction  that  his  own  course  was  run,  and  that  it 
was  best  that  his  secret  should  not  die  with  him.  Daggett 
had  rendered  him  certain  services,  too,  and  gratitude  might 
have  had  some  influence. 

"  My  mind  has  been  much  exercised  with  this  matter  of 
he  hidden  gold,"  resumed  the  deacon,  after  the  long  pause 
already  mentioned.  "  You  will  remember  that  there  may 
be  lawful  owners  of  that  money,  should  Gar'ner  even  suc 
ceed  in  finding  it." 

"  'T  would  be  hard  for  'em  to  prove  their  claims,  sir,  if 
what  McGosh  told  me  was  true.  Accordin'  to  his  account, 
the  gold  came  from  all  sides — starboard  and  larboard,  as  a 
body  might  say — and  it  was  jumbled  together,  and  so  mixed, 
that  a  young  girl  could  not  pick  out  her  lover's  keepsake 
from  among  the  other  pieces.  'Twas  the  'arnin's  of  three 
years  cruisin',  as  I  understood  him  to  say ;  and  much  of  the 
stuff  had  been  exchanged  in  port,  especially  to  get  the  cus 
tom-house  officers  and  king's  officers  out  of  its  wake. 
There 's  king's  officers  among  them  bloody  Spaniards, 
Deacon  Pratt,  all  the  same  as  among  the  English." 

"  Be  temperate  in  your  language,  friend ;  a  rough  speech 
is  unseemly,  particularly  of  the  Lord's  day." 

Daggett  rolled  the  tobacco  over  his  tongue,  and  his  eyes 
twinkled  with  a  sort  of  leer,  which  indicated  that  the  fellow 
was  not  without  some  humour.  He  submitted  patiently  to 
the  rebuke,  however,  making  no  remonstrance  against  its 
reception. 
4* 


40  THESEALIONS. 

"  No,  no,"  he  added  presently,  "  a  starn  chase,  they  say, 
is  a  long  chase;  and  the  owners  of  them  doubloons,  if 
owners  they  can  now  be  called,  must  be  out  of  sight,  long 
before  this.  Accordin'  to  McGosh,  some  of  the  gold  r'aally 
captured  had  passed  back  through  the  hands  of  them  that 
sent  it  to  sea,  and  they  did  not  know  their  own  children !" 

"  It  is  certainly  hard  to  identify  coin,  and  it  would  be  a 
bold  man  who  should  stand  up,  in  open  court,  and  make 
oath  to  its  being  the  same  he  had  once  held.  I  have  heard 
of  the  same  gold's  having  answered  the  purposes  of  twenty 
banks,  one  piece  being  so  like  another." 

"  Ay,  ay,  sir,  gold  is  gold;  and  any  of  it  is  good  enough 
for  me,  though  doubloons  is  my  favourites.  When  a  fellow 
has  got  half-a-dozen  doubloons  alongside  of  his  ribs,  he  can 
look  the  landlord  full  in  the  eye;  and  no  one  thinks  of 
saying  to  sich  as  he, '  it 's  time  to  think  of  shipping  ag'in.'  " 

From  the  nature  of  this  discourse,  it  will  not  be  easy  for 
the  reader  to  imagine  the  real  condition  of  Daggett.  At 
the  very  moment  he  was  thus  conversing  of  money,  and 
incidentally  manifesting  his  expectations  of  accompanying 
Roswell  Gardiner  in  the  expedition  that  was  about  to  sail, 
the  man  had  not  actually  four-and-twenty  hours  of  life  in 
him.  Mary  Pratt  had  foreseen  his  true  state,  accustomed 
as  she  was  to  administer  to  the  wants  of  the  dying;  but 
no  one  else  appeared  to  be  aware  of  it,  not  even  the  deacon. 
It  was  true  that  the  fellow  spoke,  as  it  might  be,  from  his 
throat  only,  and  that  his  voice  was  hollow,  and  sometimes 
reduced  to  a  whisper ;  but  he  ascribed  this,  himself,  to  the 
circumstance  that  he  had  taken  a  cold.  Whether  the  dea 
con  believed  this  account  or  not,  it  might  be  difficult  to 
say ;  but  he  appeared  to  give  it  full  credit.  Perhaps  his 
mind  was  so  much  occupied  with  the  subject  of  his  discus 
sions  with  Daggett,  that  it  did  not  sufficiently  advert  to  the 
real  condition  of  the  man. 

Twice,  that  afternoon,  did  Deacon  Pratt  go  between  the 
cottage  of  the  Widow  White  and  his  own  dwelling.  As  often 
did  the  relict  fly  across  the  way  to  express  her  wonder  to 
the  Widow  Stone,  at  the  frequency  of  the  rich  man's  visits. 
The  second  time  that  he  came  was  when  he  saw  the  whale- 
boat  rounding  the  end  of  Shelter  Island,  and  he  perceived, 
by  means  of  his  glass,  that  Dr.  Sage  was  in  it.  At  thia 


THESEALIONS.  41 

sight  the  deacon  hurried  off  to  the  cottage  again,  having 
something  to  say  to  Daggett  that  could  no  longer  be  de 
layed. 

"  The  whale-boat  will  soon  be  in,"  he  observed,  as  soon 
as  he  had  taken  his  seat,  "  and  we  shall  shortly  have  the 
doctor  here.  That  young  Gar'ner  does  what  he  has  to  do, 
always,  with  a  jerk !  There  was  no  such  haste,  but  he 
seems  to  be  ever  in  a  hurry  !" 

"  Do  what  is  to  be  done  at  once,  and  then  lie  by,  is  the 
sailor's  rule,  deacon,"  rejoined  the  mariner.  "  Squalls, 
and  gusts,  and  reefin',  and  brailin'  up,  and  haulin'  down, 
won't  wait  for  the  seaman's  leisure.  His  work  must  be 
done  at  once,  or  it  will  not  be  done  at  all.  I  'm  not  afeard 
of  the  doctor ;  so  let  him  come  as  soon  as  he  pleases.  Me 
dicine  can't  hurt  a  body,  if  he  don't  take  it." 

"There's  one  thing  I  wish  to  say  to  you,  Daggett,  be 
fore  Dr.  Sage  comes  in.  Talking  too  much  may  excite 
you,  especially  talking  of  matters  that  are  of  interest;  and 
you  may  give  him  a  false  impression  of  your  state,  should 
you  get  the  pulse  up,  and  the  cheek  flushed,  by  over-talk 
ing." 

"I  understand  you,  deacon.  My  secret  is  my  secret, 
and  no  doctor  shall  get  it  out  of  me  as  long  as  I  know  what 
I  say.  I'm  not  so  friendly  with  them,  as  to  seek  counsel 
among  doctors." 

"Then  it's  the  Lord's  day,"  added  the  Pharisee,  "and 
it  is  not  seemly  to  dwell  too  much  on  worldly  interests,  on 
the  Sabbath." 

A  novice  might  have  been  surprised,  after  what  had 
passed,  at  the  exceeding  coolness  with  which  the  deacon  ut 
tered  this  sentiment.  Daggett  was  not  so  in  the  least,  how 
ever  ;  for  he  had  taken  the  measure  of  his  new  confidant's 
conscience,  and  had  lived  long  enough  to  know  how  marked 
was  the  difference  between  professions  and  practice.  No 
thing,  indeed,  is  more  common  than  to  meet  with  those 
who  denounce  that  in  others,  which  is  of  constant  occur 
rence  with  themselves ;  and  who  rail  at  vices  that  are  so 
interwoven  with  their  own  moral  being,  as  to  compose  in 
tegral  portions  of  their  existence.  As  for  the  deacon,  he 
really  thought  it  would  be  unseemly,  and  of  evil  example, 
for  Daggett  to  converse  with  Dr.  Sage,  touching  these 


42  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

doubloons,  of  the  Lord's  day ;  while  he  had  felt  no  scru 
ples  himself,  a  short  hour  before,  to  make  them  the  theme 
of  a  long  and  interesting  discussion,  in  his  own  person. 
It  might  not  repay  us  for  the  trouble,  to  look  for  the  salve 
that  the  worthy  man  applied  to  his  own  conscience,  by  way 
of  reconciling  the  apparent  contradiction ;  though  it  pro 
bably  was  connected  with  some  fancied  and  especial  duty 
on  his  part,  of  taking  care  of  the  sick  man's  secrets.  Sick 
ness,  it  is  well  known,  forms  the  apology  for  many  an  error, 
both  of  omission  and  commission. 

Dr.  Sage  now  arrived ;  a  shrewd,  observant,  intelligent 
man,  who  nad  formerly  represented  the  district  in  which 
he  lived,  in  Congress.  He  was  skilful  in  his  profession, 
and  soon  made  up  his  mind  concerning  the  state  of  his 
patient.  As  the  deacon  never  left  him  for  a  moment,  to 
him  he  first  communicated  his  opinion,  after  the  visit,  as 
the  two  walked  back  towards  the  well-known  dwelling  of 
the  Pratts. 

"  This  poor  man  is  in  the  last  stages  of  a  decline,"  said 
the  physician,  coolly,  "  and  medicine  can  do  him  no  good. 
He  may  live  a  month ;  though  it  would  not  surprise  me  to 
hear  of  his  death  in  an  hour." 

"  Do  you  think  his  time  so  short !"  exclaimed  the  deacon. 
"  I  was  in  hopes  he  might  last  until  the  Sea  Lion  goes  out, 
and  that  a  voyage  might  help  to  set  him  up." 

"  Nothing  will  ever  set  him  up  again,  deacon,  you  may 
depend  on  that.  No  sea-voyage  will  do  him  any  good ; 
and  it  is  better  that  he  should  remain  on  shore,  on  account 
of  the  greater  comforts  he  will  get.  Does  he  belong  on 
Oyster  Pond  ?" 

"  He  comes  from  somewhere  east,"  answered  the  dea 
con,  careful  not  to  let  the  doctor  know  the  place  whence 
the  stranger  had  come,  though  to  little  purpose,  as  will 
presently  be  seen.  "  He  has  neither  friend  nor  acquaint 
ance,  here  ;  though  I  should  think  his  effects  sufficient  to 
meet  all  charges." 

"  Should  they  not  be,  he  is  welcome  to  my  visit,"  an 
swered  the  doctor,  promptly ;  for  he  well  understood  the 
deacon's  motive  in  making  the  remark.  "  I  have  enjoyed 
a  pleasant  sail  across  the  bays  with  young  Gar'ner,  who 
has  promised  to  take  me  back  again.  I  like  boating, 


THESEALIONS.  43 

and  am  always  better  for  one  of  these  sailing  excursions. 
Could  I  carry  my  patients  along,  half  of  them  would  be 
benefited  by  the  pure  air  and  the  exercise." 

"  It 's  a  grateful  thing  to  meet  with  one  of  your  temper 
ament,  doctor — but  Daggett — " 

"  Is  this  man  named  Daggett  ?"  interrupted  the  physician. 

"  I  believe  that  is  what  he  calls  himself,  though  a  body 
never  is  certain  of  what  such  people  say." 

"  That  }s  true,  deacon  ;  your  rambling,  houseless  sailor 
is  commonly  a  great  liar — at  least  so  have  I  always  found 
him.  Most  of  their  log-books  will  not  do  to  read ;  or,  for 
that  matter,  to  be  written  out,  in  full.  But  if  this  man's 
name  is  really  Daggett,  he  must  come  from  the  Vineyard. 
There  are  Daggetts  there  in  scores ;  yes,  he  must  be  a 
Vineyard  man." 

"  There  are  Daggetts  in  Connecticut,  as  I  know,  of  a 
certainty — " 

"We  all  know  that,  for  it  is  a  name  of  weight  there; 
but  the  Vineyard  is  the  cradle  of  the  breed.  The  man  has 
a  Vineyard  look  about  him,  too.  I  dare  say,  now,  he  has 
not  been  home  for  many  a  day." 

The  deacon  was  in  an  agony.  He  was  menaced  with 
the  very  thing  he  was  in  the  hope  of  staving  off,  or  a  dis 
cussion  on  the  subject  of  the  sick  man's  previous  life. 
The  doctor  was  so  mercurial  and  quick  of  apprehension, 
that,  once  fairly  on  the  scent,  he  was  nearly  certain  he 
would  extract  every  thing  from  the  patient.  This  was  the 
principal  reason  why  the  deacon  did  not  wish  to  send  for 
him ;  the  expense,  though  a  serious  objection  to  one  so 
niggardly,  being  of  secondary  consideration  when  so  many 
doubloons  were  at  stake.  It  was  necessary,  however,  to 
talk  on  boldly,  as  any  appearance  of  hesitation  might  ex 
cite  the  doctor's  distrust.  The  answers,  therefore,  came 
instantaneously. 

"  It  may  be  as  you  say,  doctor,"  returned  the  deacon ; 
"  for  them  Vineyard  folks  (Anglice  folk)  are  great  wan 
derers." 

"  That  are  they.  I  had  occasion  to  pass  a  day  there,  a 
few  years  since,  on  my  way  to  Boston,  and  I  found  five 
wamen  on  the  island  to  one  man.  It  must  be  a  particu 
larly  conscientious  person  who  could  pass  a  week  there. 


44  THESEALIONS. 

and  escape  committing  the  crime  of  bigamy.  As  for  your 
bachelors,  I  have  heard  that  a  poor  wretch  of  that  descrip 
tion,  who  unluckily  found  himself  cast  ashore  there,  was 
married  three  times  the  same  morning." 

As  the  doctor  was  a  little  of  a  wag,  deacon  Pratt  did  not 
deem  it  necessary  religiously  to  believe  all  that  now  escaped 
him ;  but  he  was  glad  to  keep  him  in  this  vein,  in  order  to 
prevent  his  getting  again  on  the  track  of  Daggett's  early 
life.  The  device  succeeded,  Martha's  Vineyard  being  a 
standing  joke  for  all  in  that  quarter  of  the  world,  on  the 
subject  of  the  ladies. 

Mary  was  in  the  porch  to  receive  her  uncle  and  the 
physician.  It  was  unnecessary  for  her  to  ask  any  questions, 
for  her  speaking  countenance  said  all  that  was  required,  in 
order  to  obtain  an  answer. 

"He's  in  a  bad  way,  certainly,  young  lady,"  observed 
the  doctor,  taking  a  seat  on  one  of  the  benches,  "  and  I 
can  give  no  hope.  How  long  he  may  live,  is  another  mat 
ter.  If  he  has  friends  whom  he  wishes  to  see,  or  if  he  has 
any  affairs  to  settle,  the  truth  should  be  told  him  at  once, 
and  no  time  lost." 

"  He  knows  nothing  of  his  friends,"  interrupted  the 
deacon,  quite  thrown  off  his  guard  by  his  own  eagerness, 
and  unconscious,  at  the  moment,  of  the  manner  in  which 
he  was  committing  himself  on  the  subject  of  a  knowledge 
of  the  sick  man's  birth-place,  "  not  having  been  on  the 
Vineyard,  or  heard  from  there,  since  he  first  left  home, 
quite  fifty  years  since." 

The  doctor  saw  the  contradiction,  and  it  set  him  think 
ing,  and  conjecturing,  but  he  was  too  discreet  to  betray 
himself.  An  explanation  there  probably  was,  and  he  trusted 
to  time  to  ascertain  it. 

"  What  has  become  of  captain  Gar'ner?"  he  asked,  look 
ing  curiously  around,  as  if  he  expected  to  find  him  tied  to 
the  niece's  apron-string. 

Mary  blushed,  but  she  was  too  innocent  to  betray  any 
real  confusion. 

"  He  has  gone  back  to  the  schooner,  in  order  to  have  the 
boat  ready  for  your  return." 

"  And  that  return  must  take  place,  young  lady,  as  soon 
as  I  have  drunk  two  cups  of  your  tea.  I  have  patients  at 


THESEALIONS.  45 

the  Harbour  who  must  yet  be  visited  this  evening,  and  the 
wind  goes  down  with  the  sun.  Let  the  poor  man  take  the 
draughts  I  have  left  for  him  —  they  will  soothe  him,  and 
help  his  breathing — more  than  this  my  skill  can  do  nothing 
for  him.  Deacon,  you  need  say  nothing  of  this  visit  —  1 
am  sufficiently  repaid  by  the  air,  the  sail,  and  Miss  Mary's 
welcome.  I  perceive  that  she  is  glad  to  see  me,  and  that 
is  something,  between  so  young  a  woman  and  so  old  a 
man.  And  now  for  the  two  cups  of  tea." 

The  tea  was  drunk,  and  the  doctor  took  his  leave, 
shaking  his  head  as  he  repeated  to  the  niece,  that  the 
medical  science  could  do  nothing  for  the  sick  man. 

"  Let  his  friends  know  his  situation  at  once,  deacon," 
he  said,  as  they  walked  towards  the  wharf,  where  the 
whale-boat  was  all  ready  for  a  start.  "  There  is  not  an 
hour  to  lose.  Now  I  think  of  it,  the  Flash,  captain  Smith, 
is  to  take  a  cargo  of  oil  to  Boston,  and  sails  to-morrow.  I 
can  write  a  line  by  her,  as  it  is  ten  to  one  she  will  go  into 
the  Hole.  All  our  craft  get  into  that  Hole,  or  into  Tar 
paulin  Cove,  before  they  venture  across  the  Shoals;  and  a 
letter  addressed  to  any  person  of  the  name  of  Daggett 
might  find  the  right  man.  I'll  write  it  this  very  evening." 

The  announcement  of  this  intention  threw  the  deacon 
into  a  cold-sweat,  but  he  did  not  think  it  prudent  to  say 
aught  against  it.  He  had  bought  the  Sea  Lion,  engaged 
Roswell  Gardiner,  and  otherwise  expended  a  large  sum  of 
money,  in  the  expectation  of  handling  those  doubloons,  to 
say  nothing  of  the  furs ;  and  here  was  a  chance  of  all  his 
calculations  being  defeated  by  the  interference  of  imperti 
nent  and  greedy  relatives !  There  was  no  remedy  but  pa 
tience,  and  this  the  deacon  endeavoured  to  exercise. 

Deacon  Pratt  did  not  accompany  the  doctor  beyond  the 
limits  of  his  own  orchard.  It  was  not  deemed  seemly  for  a 
member  of  the  meeting  to  be  seen  walking  out  on  the  Sab 
bath,  and  this  was  remembered  in  season  to  prevent  neigh 
bourly  comments.  It  is  true,  the  doctor  might  furnish  an 
apology;  but,  your  strictly  religious  people,  when  they  un 
dertake  the  care  of  other  people's  consciences,  do  not  often 
descend  to  these  particulars. 

No  sooner  had  Gardiner  and  the  physician  re-embarked, 
than  the  deacon  returned  to  the  cottage  of  the  Wido\% 


46  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

White.  Here  he  had  another  long  and  searching  discourse 
with  the  sick  mariner.  Poor  Daggett  was  wearied  with 
the  subject ;  but  Dr.  Sage's  predictions  of  an  early  termi 
nation  of  the  case,  and  the  possibility  that  kinsmen  might 
cross  over  from  the  '  Vineyard,'  in  order  to  learn  what  the 
long  absent  man  had  in  his  possession,  acted  on  him  as 
keen  incentives.  By  learning  the  most  material  facts  now, 
the  Sea  Lion  might  get  so  far  ahead  of  all  competitors  as 
to  secure  the  prizes,  even  should  Daggett  let  others  into 
the  secret,  and  start  another  vessel  on  the  same  expedition. 
His  own  schooner  was  nearly  ready  for  sea,  whereas  time 
would  be  needed  in  order  to  make  an  entire  outfit. 

But  Daggett  did  not  appear  to  be  disposed  to  be  more 
communicative  than  heretofore.  He  went  over  the  narra 
tive  of  the  discovery  of  the  sealing-island,  and  gave  a  gra 
phic  account  of  the  number  and  tame  condition  of  the 
animals  who  frequented  it.  A  man  might  walk  in  their 
midst  without  giving  the  smallest  alarm.  In  a  word,  all 
that  a  gang  of  good  hands  would  have  to  do,  would  be  to 
kill,  and  skin,  and  secure  the  oil.  It  would  be  like  pick 
ing  up  dollars  on  a  sea-beach.  Sadly  !  sadly  !  indeed,  was 
the  deacon's  cupidity  excited  by  this  account;  a  vivid  pic 
ture  of  whales,  or  seals,  having  some  such  effect  on  the 
imagination  of  a  true  Suffolk  county  man,  or  more  pro 
perly  on  that  of  an  East-ender,  as  those  who  live  beyond 
Riverhead  are  termed,  as  a  glowing  account  of  a  prairie 
covered  with  wheat  has  on  that  of  a  Wolverine  or  a  Buck 
eye ;  or  an  enumeration  of  cent  per  cent,  has  on  the  feel 
ings  of  a  Wall-street  broker.  Never  before  had  Deacon 
Pratt  been  so  much  "  exercised"  with  a  love  of  Mammon. 
The  pirate's  tale,  which  was  also  recapitulated  with  much 
gusto,  scarce  excited  him  as  much  as  Daggett's  glowing 
account  of  the  number,  condition,  and  size  of  the  seals. 

Nothing  was  withheld  but  the  latitudes  and  longitudes, 
No  art  of  the  deacon's,  and  he  practised  many,  could  ex 
tort  from  the  mariner  these  most  material  facts,  without 
which  all  the  rest  were  useless ;  and  the  old  man  worked 
himself  into  a  fever  almost  as  high  as  that  which  soon 
came  over  Daggett,  in  the  effort  to  come  at  these  facts — but 
all  in  vain. 

At  that  hour  the  pulse  of  the  sick  man  usually  quicken- 


THESEALIONS.  47 

ed;  but,  on  this  occasion,  it  fairly  thumped.  He  had 
excited  himself,  as  well  as  his  listener;  and  the  inconsi 
derate  manner  in  which  both  had  yielded  up  their  energies 
to  these  enticing  images  of  wealth,  contributed  largely  to 
increase  the  evil.  At  length,  exhaustion  came  to  put  an 
end  to  the  scene,  which  was  getting  to  be  dramatic  as  well 
as  revolting. 

So  conscious  was  the  deacon,  on  returning  home  that 
evening,  that  his  mind  was  not  in  such  a  condition  as  it 
behoved  him  to  keep  it  in  on  the  Lord's  Day,  that  he  was 
afraid  to  encounter  the  placid  eye  of  his  devout  and  single- 
minded  niece.  Instead  of  joining  her,  and  uniting  in  the 
services  that  were  customary  at  that  hour,  he  walked  in 
the  adjoining  orchard  until  near  nine  o'clock.  Mammon 
was  uppermost  in  the  place  of  the  Deity,  and  habit  offered 
too  strong  a  barrier  to  permit  him  to  bring,  as  it  were,  the 
false  god  openly  into  the  presence  of  the  true. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

"Oh!  mourn  not  for  them,  their  grief  is  o'er, 
Oh!  weep  not  for  them,  they  weep  no  more  ; 
For  deep  is  their  sleep,  though  cold  and  haid 
Their  pillow  may  be  in  the  old  kirk-yard."' 

BATLY." 

EARLY  on  the  succeeding  morning,  the  whole  household 
of  deacon  Pratt,  himself  included,  were  up  and  doing.  It 
was  as  the  sun  came  up  out  of  the  waters  that  Mary  and 
her  uncle  met  in  the  porch,  as  if  to  greet  each  other. 

"  Yonder  comes  the  Widow  White,  and  seemingly  in  a 
great  hurry,"  said  the  niece,  anxiously ;  "  I  am  afraid  her 
patient  is  worse !" 

"  He  seemed  better  when  I  left  him  last  evening,  though 

a  little  tired  with  talking,"  returned  the  uncle.  "The  man 

would  talk,  do  all  I  could  to  stop  him.     I  wanted  to  get 

but  two  or  three  words  from  him,  and  he  used  a  thousand, 

5 


48  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

without  once  using  the  few  I  wished  most  to  hear.  A  talk 
ing  man  is  that  Daggett,  I  can  tell  you,  Mary !" 

"  He'll  never  talk  ag'in,  deacon  !"  exclaimed  the  Widow 
White,  who  had  got  so  near  as  to  hear  the  concluding 
words  of  the  last  speaker — "  He  '11  never  say  good  or  evil 
more !" 

The  deacon  was  so  confounded  as  to  be  speechless.  As 
for  Mary,  she  expressed  her  deep  regrets  that  the  summons 
should  have  been  so  sudden,  and  that  the  previous  prepara 
tion  was  so  small ;  matters  that  gave  her  far  more  concern 
than  any  other  consideration.  They  were  not  long  left  to 
conjectures,  the  voluble  widow  soon  supplying  all  the  facts 
that  had  occurred.  It  appeared  that  Daggett  died  in  the 
night,  the  widow  having  found  him  stiff  and  cold  on  visit 
ing  his  bed-side  a  few  minutes  before.  That  this  somewhat 
unexpected  event,  as  to  the  time  at  least,  was  hastened  by 
the  excitement  of  the  conversation  mentioned,  there  can 
be  little  doubt,  though  no  comment  was  made  on  the  cir 
cumstance.  The  immediate  cause  of  death  was  suffocation 
from  the  effects  of  suppuration,  as  so  often  occurs  in  rapid 
consumption. 

It  would  be  representing  deacon  Pratt  as  a  worse  man 
than  he  actually  was,  to  say  that  this  sudden  death  had  no 
effect  on  his  feelings.  For  a  short  time  it  brought  him 
back  to  a  sense  of  his  own  age,  and  condition,  and  pros 
pects.  For  half  an  hour  these  considerations  troubled  him, 
but  the  power  of  Mammon  gradually  resumed  its  sway,  and 
the  unpleasant  images  slowly  disappeared  in  others  that  he 
found  more  agreeable.  Then  he  began  seriously  to  bethink 
him  of  what  the  circumstances  required  to  be  done. 

As  there  was  nothing  unusual  in  the  death  of  Daggett, 
the  investigations  of  the  coroner  were  not  required.  It 
was  clearly  a  natural,  though  a  sudden  death.  It  remained, 
therefore,  only  to  give  directions  about  the  funeral,  and  to 
have  an  eye  to  the  safe-keeping  of  the  effects  of  the  de 
ceased.  The  deacon  assumed  the  duty  of  taking  charge 
of  everything.  The  chest  of  Daggett  was  removed  to  his 
house  for  safe-keeping,  the  key  having  been  taken  from  the 
pocket  of  his  vest,  and  the  necessary  orders  were  given  for 
the  final  disposition  of  the  body. 

The  deacon  had  another  serious,  and  even  painful  half 


THESEALIONS.  49 

hour,  when  he  first  looked  upon  the  corpse.  There  it  lay, 
a  senseless  shell,  deserted  by  its  immortal  tenant,  and  to 
tally  unconscious  of  that  subject  which  had  so  lately  and 
so  intensely  interested  them  both.  It  appeared  as  if  the 
ghastly  countenance  expressed  its  sense  of  the  utter  worth- 
lessness  of  all  earthly  schemes  of  wealth  and  happiness. 
Eternity  seemed  stamped  upon  the  pinched  and  sunken 
features;  not  eternity  in  the  sense  of  imperishable  matter, 
but  in  the  sense  of  the  fate  of  man.  Had  all  the  gold  of 
the  Indies  lain  within  his  reach,  the  arm  of  Daggett  was 
now  powerless  to  touch  it.  His  eye  could  no  longer  gloat 
upon  treasure,  nor  any  part  of  his  corporeal  system  profit 
by  its  possession.  A  more  striking  commentary  on  the 
vanity  of  human  wishes  could  not,  just  then,  have  been 
offered  to  the  consideration  of  the  deacon.  His  moral 
being  was  very  strangely  constituted.  From  early  childhood 
he  had  been  accustomed  to  the  cant  of  religion ;  and,  in 
many  instances,  impressions  had  been  made  on  him  that 
produced  effects  that  it  was  easy  to  confound  with  the 
fruits  that  real  piety  brings  forth.  This  is  a  result  that  we 
often  find  in  a  state  of  society  in  which  appearances  are 
made  to  take  the  place  of  reality.  What  is  more,  it  is  a 
result  that  we  may  look  for  equally  among  the  formalists 
of  established  sects,  and  among  the  descendants  of  those 
who  once  deserted  the  homes  of  their  fathers  in  order  to 
escape  from  the  impiety  of  so  meretricious  an  abuse  of  the 
substance  of  godliness.  In  the  case  of  the  latter,  appear 
ances  occupy  the  mind  more  than  that  love  of  God  which 
is  the  one  great  test  of  human  conversion  from  sin  to  an 
improving  state  of  that  holiness,  without  which  we  are  told 
no  man  shall  see  his  Creator;  without  which,  indeed,  no 
man  could  endure  to  look  upon  that  dread  Being  face  to 
face. 

The  deacon  had  all  the  forms  of  godliness  in  puritanical 
perfection.  He  had  never  taken  the  "  name  of  his  God  in 
vain,"  throughout  the  course  of  a  long  life;  but,  he  had 
abstained  from  this  revolting  and  gratuitous  sin,  more  be 
cause  it  was  a  part  of  the  teachings  of  his  youth  so  to  do, 
and  because  the  neighbours  would  have  been  shocked  at 
its  commission,  than  because  he  felt  the  deep  reverence  for 
his  Maker,  which  it  became  the  insignificant  being  that 


50  THESEALIONS. 

was  the  work  of  his  hand  to  entertain ;  and  which  would, 
of  itself,  most  effectually  have  prevented  any  wantsn  use 
of  his  holy  name,  let  the  neighbours  feel  or  think  as  they 
might  on  the  subject.  In  this  way  Deacon  Pratt  might  be 
said  to  have  respected  most  of  the  commands  of  the  deca 
logue  ;  not,  however,  because  the  spirit  of  God  impelled 
him,  through  love,  to  reverence  and  obey,  but  because  he 
had  been  brought  up  in  a  part  of  the  country  where  it  was 
considered  seemly  and  right  to  be  moral,  to  the  senses,  at 
least,  if  not  to  the  all-seeing  eye  above.  It  was  in  this  way 
that  the  deacon  had  arrived  at  his  preferment  in  the  meet 
ing.  He  had  all  the  usual  sectarian  terms  at  the  end  of 
his  tongue ;  never  uttered  a  careless  expression ;  was  regu 
lar  at  meeting;  apparently  performed  all  the  duties  that  his 
church  required  of  its  professors,  in  the  way  of  mere  reli 
gious  observances ;  yet  was  he  as  far  from  being  in  that 
state  which  St.  Paul  has  described  succinctly  as  "  for  me 
to  live  in  Christ,  and  to  die  is  gain,"  as  if  he  had  been  a 
pagan.  It  was  not  the  love  of  God  that  was  active  in  his 
soul,  but  the  love  of  self;  and  he  happened  to  exhibit  his 
passion  under  these  restrained  and  deceptive  forms,  simply 
because  he  had  been  born  and  educated  in  a  state  of  so 
ciety  where  they  composed  an  integral  part  of  existence. 
Covetousness  was  the  deacon's  besetting  sin ;  and,  as  it  is 
a  vice  that  may  be  pretty  well  concealed,  with  a  little  at 
tention  to  appearances,  it  was  the  less  likely  to  expose  him 
to  comments  than  almost  any  other  sin.  It  is  true,  that 
the  neighbourhood  sometimes  fancied  him  '  close/  or,  as 
they  expressed  it,  "  cluss,"  and  men  got  to  look  sharply  to 
their  own  interests  in  their  dealings  with  him ;  but,  on  the 
whole,  there  was  perhaps  more  reason  to  apprehend,  in 
such  a  community,  that  the  example  of  so  good  a  man 
should  be  accepted  as  authority,  than  that  his  acts  should 
impeach  his  character,  or  endanger  his  standing. 

Very  different  were  the  situation,  feelings,  and  motives! 
of  the  niece.  She  devoutly  loved  God,  and,  as  a  conse 
quence,  all  of  those  whom  he  had  created,  and  placed 
around  her.  Her  meek  and  gentle  spirit  led  her  to  wor 
ship  in  sincerity  and  truth ;  and  all  that  she  thought,  said, 
and  did,  was  under  the  correction  of  the  principles  such 
motives  could  best  produce.  Her  woman's  love  for  Ros- 


THE    SEA    LIONS.  51 

well  Gardiner  alone  troubled  her  otherwise  happy  and 
peaceful  existence.  That,  indeed,  had  caused  her  more 
than  once  to  falter  in  her  way ;  but  she  struggled  with  the 
weakness,  and  had  strong  hopes  of  being  able  to  overcome 
it.  To  accept  of  any  other  man  as  a  husband,  was,  in  her 
eyes,  impossible;  with  the  feelings  she  was  fully  conscious 
of  entertaining  towards  him,  it  would  have  been  both  in 
delicate  and  unjust :  but,  to  accept  him,  while  he  regarded 
the  Redeemer  as  only  man,  however  pure  and  exalted,  she 
felt  would  be  putting  herself  willingly,  or  wilfully,  into  the 
hands  of  the  great  enemy  of  her  salvation.  Often  and  often 
had  she  prayed  for  her  lover,  even  more  devoutly,  and  with 
hotter  tears,  than  she  had  ever  prayed  for  herself;  but,  so 
far  as  she  could  discover,  without  any  visible  fruits.  His 
opinions  remained  unchanged,  and  his  frank  nature  forbade 
him  from  concealing  their  state  from  Mary.  In  this  way, 
then,  was  unhappiness  stealing  on  the  early  and  innocent 
hours  of  one  who  might,  otherwise,  have  been  so  contented 
and  blessed.  It  formed  a  somewhat  peculiar  feature  in 
her  case,  that  her  uncle  favoured  the  views  of  her  suitor. 
This  rendered  the  trials  of  the  niece  so  much  the  more 
severe,  as  she  had  no  other  judgment  to  sustain  her  than 
her  own,  fortified  as  that  was,  however,  by  the  conscious 
ness  of  right,  and  the  support  of  that  great  power  which 
never  deserts  the  faithful. 

Such  was  the  state  of  feeling  among  some  of  the  princi 
pal  actors  of  our  tale,  when  the  sudden  death  of  Daggett 
occurred.  The  body  was  not  removed  from  the  house  of 
the  Widow  White,  but  the  next  morning  it  was  conveyed 
to  the  "  grave-yard" — '  church-yard'  would  have  sounded 
too  episcopal — and  interred  in  a  corner  that  was  bestowed 
on  the  unhonoured  and  unknown.  It  was  then,  only,  that 
the  deacon  believed  he  was  the  sole  depository  of  the  im 
portant  secrets.  He  had  the  charts  in  his  possession,  and 
no  more  revelations  could  pass  the  lips  of  Daggett.  Should 
the  friends  of  the  deceased  sailor  hear  of  his  death,  and 
come  to  look  after  his  effects,  there  was  very  little  proba 
bility  of  their  finding  anything  among  them  to  furnish  a 
clue  to  either  the  new  sealing-ground,  or  to  the  buried 
treasure  of  the  pirate.  In  order  to  be  secured,  he  even 
went  a  little  beyond  his  usual  precautions,  actually  dis- 
5* 


52  THESEALIONS. 

charging  all  indebtedness  of  the  deceased  to  the  Widow 
White  out  of  his  own  pocket,  by  giving  to  her  the  sum  of 
ten  dollars.  This  was  handsome  compensation  in  her  eyes 
as  well  as  in  his,  and  he  quieted  the  suspicions  so  great 
and  unusual  an  act  of  liberality  would  be  apt  to  awaken, 
by  saying,  "  he  would  look  to  the  friends,  or  if  they  failed 
him,  to  the  effects,  for  his  returns;  for  it  was  better  he 
should  lose  by  the  stranger,  than  a  lone  widow."  He  also 
paid  for  the  coffin,  the  digging  of  the  grave,  and  the  other 
light  expenses  of  the  interment.  IB  a  word,  the  deacon 
endeavoured  to  hush  all  impertinent  inquiries  by  applying 
the  salve  of  silver,  wherever  it  was  needed. 

The  chest  had  been  removed  to  a  large,  light  closet,  that 
communicated  with  the  deacon's  own  room.  When  all 
his  accounts  were  settled,  thither  he  repaired,  armed  with 
the  key  that  was  to  expose  so  much  treasure  to  his  longing 
eyes.  Some  slight  qualms  arose,  after  he  had  locked  him 
self  in  the  room,  touching  the  propriety  of  his  opening  the 
chest.  It  was  not  his,  certainly ;  but  he  put  such  a  con 
struction  on  the  nature  of  the  revelations  of  Daggett,  as  he 
thought  would  fully  justify  him  in  proceeding.  He  had 
purchased  the  schooner  expressly  to  go  in  quest  of  the 
seals  and  the  treasure.  This  he  had  done  with  Daggett's 
knowledge  and  acquiescence;  nor  did  he  conceive  that  his 
own  rights  were  lessened  by  the  mariner's  decease.  As 
for  himself,  the  deacon  had  never  believed  that  the  Mar 
tha's  Vineyard  man  could  accompany  the  expedition,  so 
that  his  presence  or  absence  could  have  no  influence  on 
his  own  rights.  It  is  true,  the  deacon  possessed  no  direct 
legal  transfer  of  the  charts;  but  he  inferred  that  all  the 
previous  circumstances  gave  him  sufficient  claims  to  justify 
him  in,  at  least,  looking  into  their  contents. 

It  was  a  solemn,  as  well  as  an  anxious  moment  to  the 
deacon,  when  he  first  raised  the  lid  of  the  chest.  Solemn, 
because  it  was  not  possible  to  forget  the  recent  decease  of 
its  late  owner;  and  anxious,  inasmuch  as  he  had  no  cer 
tainty  that  he  should  find  even  on  the  charts,  the  places  of 
which  he  sought  the  latitudes  and  longitudes.  Certainly, 
nothing  like  treasure  presented  itself  to  his  eyes,  when  all 
that  Daggett  had  left  behind  him  lay  exposed  to  view. 
The  chest  of  a  common  sailor  is  usually  but  ill-furnished, 


THESEALIONS.  53 

ariless  it  may  be  just  after  his  return  from  a  long  and  well- 
paid  voyage,  and  before  he  has  had  time  to  fall  back  on  his 
purchases  of  clothes,  as  a  fund  to  supply  his  cravings  for 
personal  gratification.  This  of  Daggett's  formed  no  ex 
ception  to  the  rule.  The  few  clothes  it  contained  were  of 
the  lightest  sort,  having  been  procured  in  warm  climates, 
and  were  well  worn,  in  addition.  The  palms,  needles,  arid 
shells,  and  carving  in  whale-bone,  had  all  been  sold,  to 
meet  their  owner's  wants,  and  nothing  of  that  sort  remained. 
There  were  two  old,  dirty,  and  ragged  charts,  and  on  these 
the  deacon  laid  his  hands,,  much  as  the  hawk,  in  its  swoop, 
descends  on  its  prey.  As  it  did,  however,  a  tremor  came 
over  him,  that  actually  compelled  him  to  throw  himself  into 
a  chair,  and  to  rest  for  a  moment. 

The  first  of  the  charts  opened,  the  deacon  saw  at  a 
glance,  was  that  of  the  antarctic  circle.  There,  sure 
enough,  was  laid  down  in  ink,  three  or  four  specks  for 
islands,  with  lat.  — °,  — ",  and  long.  — °,  — ",  written  out 
at  its  side.  We  are  under  obligations  not  to  give  the 
figures  that  stand  on  the  chart,  for  the  discovery  is  deemed 
to  be  important,  by  those  who  possess  the  secret,  even  to 
the  present  hour.  We  are  at  liberty  to  tell  the  whole 
story,  with  this  one  exception ;  and  we  shall  proceed  to  do 
so,  with  a  proper  regard  to  the  pledges  made  in  the  pre 
mises. 

The  deacon  scarcely  breathed  as  he  assured  himself  of 
the  important  fact  just  mentioned,  and  his  hands  tremblec 
to  such  a  degree  as  to  fairly  cause  the  paper  of  the  chart 
to  rattle.  Then  he  had  recourse  to  an  expedient  that  was 
strictly  characteristic  of  the  man.  He  wrote  the  latitude 
and  longitude  in  a  memorandum-book  that  he  carried  on 
his  person ;  after  which  he  again  sat  down,  and  with  great 
care  erased  the  island  and  the  writing  from  the  chart,  with 
the  point  of  a  penknife.  This  done,  his  mind  felt  infinitely 
relieved.  Nor  was  this  all.  Charts  purchased  for  the 
schooner  were  lying  on  a  table  in  his  own  room,  and  he 
projected  on  one  of  them,  as  well  as  his  skill  would  allow, 
the  seahng-islands  he  had  just  removed  from  the  chart  left 
by  Daggett.  There  he  also  wrote,  in  pencil,  the  important 
figures  that  we  are  commanded  not  to  reveal. 

The  second  chart  was  then  opened.    It  was  of  the  West 


54  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

Indies,  and  particularly  of  certain  keys.  One  of  these  last 
was  pointed  out  in  a  way  to  leave  no  doubt  that  it  was 
meant  for  the  key  indicated  by  the  pirate.  The  same  pro 
hibition  existing  as  to  this  key  that  exists  in  respect  to  the 
sealing-island,  we  cannot  be  more  explicit.  The  writing 
near  this  key  being  in  pencil,  it  was  effectually  removed 
by  means  of  India-rubber.  When  this  was  done,  the  dea 
con  used  the  precaution  to  rub  some  material  on  the  clean 
place  made  by  his  knife,  on  the  other  chart,  when  he  be 
lieved  no  eye  could  detect  what  had  just  been  done.  Hav 
ing  marked  the  proper  key,  on  his  own  chart  of  the  West 
Indies,  he  replaced  the  charts  of  Daggett  in  the  chest,  and 
locked  all  up  again.  The  verbal  accounts  of  the  sick  ma 
riner  he  had  already  transferred  to  paper,  and  he  now  be 
lieved  himself  secure  of  all  the  information  that  was  neces 
sary  to  render  him  the  richest  man  in  Suffolk ! 

When  they  next  met,  Mary  was  surprised  at  the  gaiety 
of  her  uncle,  and  that  so  soon  after  a  funeral.  He  had  a 
lightened  heart,  however ;  for  after  leading  him  on,  step 
by  step,  until  he  had  gone  so  far  as  to  purchase  and  fit  out 
the  schooner,  Daggett  had  pertinaciously  refused  to  enter 
into  those  minute  particulars  which  it  is  even  now  forbid 
den  us  to  state,  and  a  want  of  which  would  have  rendered 
his  previous  expenditures  useless.  Death,  however,  had 
lifted  the  veil,  and  the  deacon  now  believed  himself  secure 
in  his  knowledge. 

An  hour  or  two  later,  Deacon  Pratt  and  his  niece  were 
seated,  in  company  with  two  others,  at  the  dinner-table. 
The  fare  was  simple,  but  good.  Fish  enters  largely  into 
the  domestic  consumption  of  all  those  who  dwell  near  the 
water,  in  that  part  of  the  country  ;  and,  on  that  particular 
occasion,  the  uncle  had,  in  the  lightness  of  his  heart,  in 
dulged  in  what,  for  him,  was  a  piece  of  extravagance 
In  all  such  regions  there  are  broken-down,  elderly  men, 
who  live  by  taking  fish.  Liquor  has  usually  been  their 
great  enemy,  and  all  have  the  same  generic  character  of 
laziness,  shiftless  and  ill-regulated  exertions,  followed  by 
much  idleness,  and  fits  of  intemperance,  that  in  the  end 
commonly  cause  their  deaths.  Such  a  man  fished  between 
Oyster  Pond  and  Shelter  Island,  being  known  to  all  who 


THESEALIONS.  55 

dwelt  within  his  beat,  by  the  familiar  appellation  of  Baiting 
Joe. 

Shortly  after  the  discovery  of  the  latitudes  and  longi 
tudes  on  the  charts,  the  deacon  had  gone  to  the  wharf,  in 
his  impatience  to  see  how  Roswell  Gardiner  got  on  with 
the  Sea  Lion.  The  young  man,  with  his  gang  of  hands, 
was  hard  at  work,  and  a  very  material  difference  was  to  be 
observed  in  the  state  of  the  schooner,  from  that  in  which 
she  was  described  in  our  opening  chapter.  Her  rigging 
had  all  been  set  up,  every  spar  was  in  its  place,  and  alto 
gether  she  had  a  look  of  preparation  and  completeness. 
Her  water  was  taking  in,  and  from  time  to  time  a  country 
wagon,  or  an  ox-cart,  delivered  alongside  articles  belong 
ing  to  her  stores.  Of  cargo,  proper,  there  was  none,  or 
next  to  none ;  a  sealer  carrying  little  besides  salt,  and  her 
stores.  In  a  word,  the  work  was  rapidly  advancing,  and 
"  Captain  Gar'ner"  told  his  impatient  owner  that  the  craft 
would  be  ready  to  put  to  sea  in  all  that  week. 

"  I  have  succeeded  in  engaging  the  first  officer  I  want 
ed,"  added  the  young  man,  "  and  he  is  now  busy  in  look 
ing  up  and  shipping  hands,  at  Stonington.  We  must  get 
half-a-dozen  reliable  men  on  the  main,  and  then  we  can 
take  some  of  our  neighbours  here,  as  beginners,  just  to 
please  them." 

"  Yes,  ship  a  goodly  number  of  green  hands,"  said  the 
deacon,  zealously.  "  They  work  at  cheap  '  lays/  and  leave 
the  owners  the  greater  profits.  Well,  well,  Captain  Gar' 
ner,  things  seem  to  be  doing  well  in  your  hands,  and  I  will 
leave  you.  About  two  hours  after  dinner,  I  shall  want  to 
have  a  word  with  you  in  private,  and  will  thank  you  just 
to  step  across  to  the  house,  where  you  will  be  certain  to 
find  me.  Baiting  Joe  seems  to  have  hooked  something 
there,  in  'arnest." 

"  That  has  he  !  I  '11  answer  for  it  that  he  has  a  sheeps- 
head  at  the  end  of  his  line  that  will  weigh  eight  or  ten 
pounds." 

The  words  of  Gardiner  proved  true,  for  Joe  actually 
pulled  in  a  fish  of  the  description  and  weight  he  haa  just 
mentioned.  It  was  this  sight  that,  in  the  lightness  of  hia 
heart,  tempted  the  deacon  to  a  little  extravagance.  Joe 
\vaa  called  ashore,  and  after  a  good  deal  of  chaffering,  the 


56  TMESEALIONS. 

deacon  bought  the  prize  for  half  a  dollar.  As  Mary  was 
celebrated  for  her  skill  in  preparing  this  particular  fish,  the 
deacon,  before  he  left  the  wharf,  with  the  sheepshead  hang 
ing  from  one  hand,  fairly  invited  "  Captain  Gar'ner"  so  to 
time  his  visit  to  the  house,  as  to  be  present  at  the  feast. 

Nor  was  this  all.  Before  the  deacon  had  settled  with 
Joe,  the  Rev.  Mr.  Whittle  came  on  the  wharf,  confessedly 
in  quest  of  something  to  eat.  The  regular  occupations  of 
this  divine  were  writing  sermons,  preaching,  holding  con 
ferences,  marrying,  christening  and  burying,  and  hunting 
up  "something  to  eat."  About  half  of  his  precious  time 
was  consumed  in  the  last  of  these  pursuits.  We  do  not  wish 
to  represent  this  clergyman  as  having  an  undue  gastrono 
mic  propensity;  but,  as  having  a  due  one,  and  a  salary  that 
was  so  badly  paid  as  quite  to  disable  him  from  furnishing 
his  larder,  or  cellar,  with  anything  worth  mentioning,  in 
advance.  Now,  he  was  short  of  flour ;  then,  the  potatoes 
were  out;  next,  the  pork  was  consumed  ;  and  always  there 
was  a  great  scarcity  of  groceries,  and  other  necessaries  of 
that  nature.  This  neglect  on  the  part  of  the  parishioners, 
coupled  with  a  certain  improvidence  on  that  of  the  pastor, 
left  the  clergyman's  family  completely  in  that  state  which 
is  usually  described  as  being  in  the  "  from  hand  to  mouth" 
condition,  and  which  consequently  occupied  so  large  a 
portion  of  the  good  man's  time  in  4<  providing." 

Deacon  Pratt  felt  a  little  conscious  and  awkward,  at 
encountering  the  Rev.  Mr.  Whittle.  It  was  not  the  fish 
that  caused  the  first  any  concern.  Fifty  times  had  he  met 
and  gone  by  his  pastor,  running  about  with  a  perplexed  and 
hungry  look,  when  his  own  hands,  or  chaise,  or  wagon,  as 
the  case  might  be,  contained  enough  to  render  the  divine's 
family  happy  and  contented  for  a  week.  No  compunctions 
of  that  sort  ever  troubled  the  deacon's  breast.  But,  he  had 
missed  the  afternoon's  meeting  the  last  Sabbath,  a  delin 
quency  for  which  he  felt  an  awkwardness  in  accounting, 
while  he  saw  its  necessity.  The  salutations  passed  as 
usual,  the  one  party  thinking  intently  on  the  absence  from 
service,  and  the  other  of  the  sheepshead.  Now,  it  happily 
occurred  to  the  deacon  to  invite  his  pastor  also  to  partake 
of  the  fish.  There  was  enough  for  all ;  and,  though  no 
one  on  Oyster  Pond  waa  much  in  the  habit  of  entertaining 


THESEALIONS.  57 

at  dinner,  it  was  by  no  means  unusual  for  the  parishioners 
to  have  their  pastor  for  a  guest.  This  lucky  invitation  so 
occupied  the  parties  that  nothing  was  said  about  an  occur 
rence  so  very  unusual  as  the  deacon's  absence  from  "  meet' 
ing"  the  "  last  Sabba'  day  afternoon." 

By  these  simple  means  the  party  at  table  consisted  of 
the  deacon  himself,  Mary,  Roswell  Gardiner,  and  the  Rev. 
Mr.  Whittle.  The  fish  was  excellent,  being  so  fresh  and 
so  skilfully  prepared ;  and  Mary  was  highly  complimented 
by  all  who  ate  of  it,  for  her  share  in  the  entertainment. 
But  Mary  Pratt  seemed  sad.  She  had  not  yet  recovered 
from  the  melancholy  feelings  awakened  by  the  recent  death 
and  funeral ;  and  then  her  thoughts  recurred,  with  few  in 
terruptions,  to  .the  long  voyage  of  Roswell,  and  most  espe 
cially  to  the  unhappy  state  of  religious  belief  in  which  he 
would  undertake  so  hazardous  an  expedition.  Several 
times  'had  she  hinted  to  the  clergyman  her  desire  that  he 
would  '  talk  to  Roswell ;'  but  the  good  man,  though  well- 
enough  inclined,  had  really  so  much  to  do  in  '  providing,' 
that  it  was  not  a  very  easy  matter  for  him  to  go  beyond  the 
beaten  track,  in  order  to  probe  the  consciences  of  particu 
lar  individuals.  He  promised  fairly,  but  always  forgot  to 
perform ;  and  in  this  he  imitated  closely  the  example  set 
him  by  his  parishioners,  in  reference  to  his  own  salary. 

Roswell  Gardiner,  therefore,  remained  in  his  unbelief; 
or,  what  was  tantamount  to  it,  under  the  influence  of  a  set 
of  opinions  that  conflicted  with  all  that  the  church  had 
taught  since  the  time  of  the  apostles  —  at  least  so  thought 
Mary,  and  so  think  we. 

On  the  contrary,  the  pastor  and  the  deacon  were  parti 
cularly  gay,  for  men  of  their  habitual  sobriety.  Although 
those  were  not  the  days  of  temperance,  par  excellence, 
neither  of  the  guests  was  what  might  be  termed  even  a 
moderate  drinker.  For  a  novelty  in  a  sailor,  Roswell 
Gardiner  seldom  touched  anything  but  water,  while  the 
other  two  took  their  rum  and  water ;  but  it  was  in  modera 
tion,  as  all  the  gifts  of  God  should  be  used.  As  for  the 
intemperate  cry  which  makes  it  a  sin  to  partake  of  any 
liquor,  however  prudently,  it  was  then  never  heard  in  the 
land.  On  the  whole,  the  clergy  of  all  denominations  might 
be  set  down  as  brandy-and-water  men,  a  few  occasionally 


58  THESEALIONS. 

carrying  out  their  principle  to  exaggeration.  But  the  Rev. 
Mr.  Whittle  was  a  sober  man,  and,  though  he  saw  no 
great  harm  in  enlivening  his  heart  and  cheering  his  spirits 
with  brandy  taken  in  small  quantities,  he  was  never  known 
to  be  any  the  worse  for  his  libations.  It  was  the  same  with 
the  deacon,  though  he  drank  rum-and-water  of  choice; 
and  no  other  beverage,  Mary's  currant-wine  and  cider  ex- 
cepted,  was  ever  seen  on  his  table. 

One  thing  may  be  said  of  liquor,  whether  it  be  in  its 
favour  or  not;  it  usually  brings  out  all  there  is  of  the 
facetious  in  a  man,  rendering  him  conversable  and  plea 
sant;  for  the  time  being,  at  least.  This  was  apt  to  be 
peculiarly  the  case  with  the  Rev.  Mr.  Whittle  and  his 
deacons.  In  their  ordinary  intercourse  with  their  fellow- 
creatures,  these  good  people  had  taken  up  the  idea  that,  in 
order  to  be  religious,  their  countenances  must  be  sombre, 
and  that  care  and  anxiety  should  be  stamped  on  their  faces, 
just  as  if  they  had  no  confidence  in  the  efficacy  of  the  re 
demption.  Few,  indeed,  are  they  who  vindicate  their  pro 
fessions  by  living  at  peace  with  God  and  man !  At  Oyster 
Pond,  it  was  much  the  fashion  to  imagine  that  the  more  a 
person  became  impressed  with  the  truths  of  his,  and  par 
ticularly  with  those  of  her,  lost  condition,  the  more  it 
became  the  party  to  be  cynical,  and  to  pry  into,  and  com 
ment,  on  the  backslidings  of  the  entire  community.  This 
weakness,  however,  was  characteristic  of  neither  the  pastor 
nor  the  deacon,  each  of  whom  regarded  his  professions  too 
much  in  the  light  of  a  regular  "  business  transaction,"  to 
descend  into  these  little  abuses.  As  for  Mary,  good  crea 
ture,  her  humility  was  so  profound  as  to  cause  her  to  be 
lieve  herself  among  the  weakest  and  least  favoured  of  all 
who  belonged  to  meeting. 

"  I  was  sorry  that  my  late  journey  into  Connecticut  pre 
vented  my  seeing  the  poor  man  who  was  so  suddenly  taken 
away  from  the  house  of  Widow  White,"  observed  the  Rev. 
Mr.  Whittle,  some  little  time  after  he  had  made  his  original 
attack  on  the  sheepshead.  "  They  tell  me  it  was  a  hopeless 
case  from  the  first?" 

"  So  Dr.  Sage  considered  it,"  answered  the  deacon. 
*  Captain  Gar'ner  volunteered  to  go  across  for  the  doctor 
in  my  boat — "  with  a  heavy  emphasis  on  the  possessive 


THESEALIONS.  59 

pronoun  —  "  and  we  had  him  to  look  at  the  patient.  But, 
if  the  salt-water  be  good  for  consumptive  people,  as  some 
pretend,  I  think  there  is  generally  little  hope  for  seamen 
whose  lungs  once  give  way." 

"The  poor  man  was  a  mariner,  was  he?  I  did  not 
know  his  calling,  but  had  rather  got  the  impression  that 
he  was  a  husbandman.  Did  he  belong  to  Oyster  Pond  ?" 

"  No ;  we  have  none  of  the  name  of  Daggett  here,  which 
is  a  tribe  on  the  Vineyard.  Most  of  the  Daggetts  are  sea 
faring  folks  (folk,  Anglice]  and  this  man  was  one  of  that 
class,  I  believe;  though  I  know  nothing  of  him,  or  of  his 
pursuits,  except  by  a  word,  here  and  there,  dropped  in  dis 
course." 

The  deacon  thought  himself  safe  in  venturing  this  little 
departure  from  the  literal  truth,  inasmuch  as  no  one  had 
been  present,  or  he  thought  no  one  had  ever  been  present 
at  his  many  secret  conferences  with  the  deceased  mariner. 
Little,  however,  did  he  understand  the  character  of  the 
Widow  White,  if  he  flattered  himself  with  holding  any  dis 
course  under  her  roof,  in  which  she  was  not  to  participate 
in  its  subject.  So  far  from  this  having  been  the  case,  the 
good  woman  had  contrived  to  obtain,  not  only  «a  listening- 
place,  but  a  peeping-hole,  where  she  both  heard  and  saw 
most  of  that  which  passed  between  her  guest  and  the  dea 
con.  Had  her  powers  of  comprehension  been  equal  to  her 
will,  or  had  not  her  mind  been  prepossessed  with  the  no 
tion  that  the  deacon  must  be  after  herself,  old  Suffolk 
would  have  rung  with  the  marvels  that  were  thus  revealed. 
Not  only  would  an  unknown  sealmg-island  been  laid  before 
the  East-enders,  but  twenty  such  islands,  and  keys  without 
number,  each  of  which  contained  more  hidden  treasure 
than  '  Gar'ner's  Island,'  Oyster  Pond,  the  Plumb  and 
Fisher's,  and  all  the  coasts  of  the  Sound  put  together;  en 
riched  as  each  and  all  of  these  places  were  thought  to  he, 
by  the  hidden  deposits  of  Kidd. 

Nothing  but  an  accident  had  prevented  these  rumours 
from  being  circulated.  It  happened  that  on  only  one  occa 
sion  Daggett  was  explicit  and  connected  in  his  narrative. 
At  all  other  times  his  discourse  was  broken,  consisting 
more  in  allusions  to  what  had  been  previously  said  than  in 
direct  and  clear  revelations.  The  widow,  most  unfortu 
6 


60  THESEALIONS. 

nately  for  her  means  of  information,  was  with  "neighbour 
Stone"  when  the  connected  narrative  was  given,  and  all 
that  she  knew  was  disjointed,  obscure,  and  a  little  contra 
dictory.  Still,  it  was  sufficient  to  set  her  thinking  intensely 
and  sufficient  to  produce  a  material  influence  on  the  future 
fortunes  of  the  Sea  Lion,  as  will  appear  in  the  sequel. 

"  It  is  always  a  misfortune  for  a  human  being  to  take  his 
departure  away  from  home  and  friends,"  observed  the  Rev. 
Mr.  Whittle.  "  Here  was  an  immortal  soul  left  to  take  its 
last  great  flight,  unsupported,  I  dare  say,  except  by  the 
prayers  of  a  few  pious  neighbours.  I  regret  having  been 
absent  during  the  time  he  was  here.  Getting  home  of  a 
Friday  only,  I  was  compelled  to  devote  Saturday  to  pre 
parations  for  the  Sabbath;  and  Sabbath-night,  as  I  under 
stand  it,  he  departed." 

"  We  are  all  in  the  hands  of  Divine  Providence,"  said 
the  deacon,  with  a  sober  mien,  "  and  it  is  our  duty  to  sub 
mit.  To  my  thinking,  Oyster  Pond  catches  more  of  its 
share  of  the  poor  and  needy,  who  are  landed  from  vessels 
passing  east  and  west,  and  add  considerably  to  our  bur 
thens." 

This  was  said  of  a  spot  as  much  favoured  by  Divine  Pro 
vidence,  in  the  way  of  abundance,  as  any  other  in  highly- 
favoured  America.  Some  eight  or  ten  such  events  as  the 
landing  of  a  stranger  had  occurred  within  the  last  half- 
century,  and  this  was  the  only  instance  in  which  either  of 
them  had  cost  the  deacon  a  cent.  But,  so  little  was  he  ac 
customed,  and  so  little  was  he  disposed,  to  give,  that  even 
a  threatened  danger  of  that  sort  amounted,  in  his  eyes, 
nearly  to  a  loss 

"  Well,"  exclaimed  the  literal  Roswell  Gardiner,  "  I 
think,  deacon,  that  we  have  no  great  reason  to  complain. 
Southold,  Shelter  Island,  and  all  the  islands  about  here,  for 
that  matter,  are  pretty  well  off  as  to  poor,  and  it  is  little 
enough  that  we  have  to  pay  for  their  support." 

"That's  the  idea  of  a  young  man  who  never  sees  the 
tax-gatherers,"  returned  the  deacon.  "  However,  there 
are  islands,  captain  Gar'ner,  that  are  better  off  still,  and  I 
hope  you  will  live  to  find  them." 

"  Is  our  young  friend  to  sail  in  the  Sea  Lion  in  quest  of 
any  such?  '  inquired  the  pastor,  a  little  curiously. 


¥HE    SEA    LIO2TS,  61 

The  deacon  now  repented  him  of  the  allusion.  But  his 
heart  had  warmed  with  the  subject,  and  the  rum-and-water 
had  unlocked  some  of  its  wards.  So  timid  and  nervous 
had  he  become,  however,  that  the  slightest  indication  of 
anything  like  a  suspicion  that  his  secrets  were  known, 
threw  him  into  a  sweat. 

"  Not  at  all — not  at  all — the  captain  goes  on  well-known 
and  beaten  ground — Sam,  what  is  wanting,  now?" 

"  Here  is  Baiting  Joe  corned  up  from  the  wharf,  want 
ing  to  see  master,"  returned  a  grey-headed  negro,  who  had 
formerly  been  a  slave,  and  who  now  lived  about  the  place, 
giving  his  services  for  his  support. 

"  Baiting  Joe !  He  is  not  after  his  sheepshead,  I  hope — 
if  he  is,  he  is  somewhat  late  in  the  day." 

"  Ay,  ay,"  put  in  the  young  sailor,  laughing — "  tell  him, 
Sam,  that  no  small  part  of  it  is  bound  to  the  southward, 
meaning  to  cross  the  line  in  my  company,  and  that  right 
soon." 

"I  paid  Joe  his  half-dollar,  certainly  —  you  saw  me  pay 
him,  captain  Gar'ner." 

"I  don't  think  it's  any  sich  thing,  master.  There  is  a 
stranger  with  Joe,  that  he  has  ferried  across  from  Shelter 
Island,  and  he's  corned  up  from  the  wharf  too.  Yes  — 
that's  it,  master." 

A  stranger!  Who  could  it  be?  A  command  was  given 
to  admit  him,  and  no  sooner  did  Mary  get  a  sight  of  his 
person,  than  she  quietly  arose  to  procure  a  plate,  in  ordei 
that  he,  too,  might  have  his  share  of  the  fish. 


62  THESEALIONS. 


CHAPTER  V. 

"  Stranger !  I  fled  the  home  of  grief, 

At  Connocht  Moran's  tomb  to  fall ; 
I  found  the  helmet  of  my  chief, 

His  bow  still  hanging  on  our  wall." 
CAMPBELL. 

"AMPHIBIOUS!"  exclaimed  Roswell  Gardiner,  in  an 
aside  to  Mary,  as  the  stranger  entered  the  room,  following 
Baiting  Joe's  lead.  The  last  only  came  for  his  glass  of 
rum-and-water,  served  with  which  by  the  aid  of  the  negro, 
he  passed  the  back  of  his  hand  across  his  mouth,  napkin- 
fashion,  nodded  his  "  good-day,"  and  withdrew.  As  for 
the  stranger,  Roswell  Gardiner's  term  being  particularly 
significant,  it  may  be  well  to  make  a  brief  explanation. 

The  word  "  amphibious"  is,  or  rather  was,  well  applied  to 
many  of  the  seamen,  whalers,  and  sealers,  who  dwelt  on  the 
eastern  end  of  Long  Island,  or  the  Vineyard,  around  Sto- 
nington,  and,  perhaps  we  might  add,  in  the  vicinity  of  New 
Bedford.  The  Nantucket  men  had  not  base  enough,  in 
the  way  of  terra  firma,  to  come  properly  within  the  cate 
gory.  The  class  to  which  the  remark  strictly  applied  were 
sailors  without  being  seamen,  in  the  severe  signification 
of  the  term.  While  they  could  do  all  that  was  indispensa 
bly  necessary  to  take  care  of  their  vessels,  were  surpassed 
by  no  other  mariners  in  enterprise,  and  daring,  and  hardi 
hood,  they  knew  little  about  "  crowning  cables,"  "  carrick- 
bends,"  and  all  the  mysteries  of  "  knotting,"  "  grafting," 
and  "  splicing."  A  regular  Delaware-bay  seaman  would 
have  turned  up  his  nose  in  contempt  at  many  of  their  ways, 
and  at  much  of  their  real  ignorance;  but,  when  it  came  to 
the  drag,  or  to  the  oar,  or  to  holding  out  in  bad  weather, 
or  to  any  of  the  more  manly  qualities  of  the  business,  he 
would  be  certain  to  yield  his  respect  to  those  at  whom  it 
had  originally  been  his  disposition  to  laugh.  It  might  best 
describe  these  men  to  say  that  they  bore  some  such  relation 
to  the  thorough-bred  tar,  as  the  volunteer  bears  to  the 
regular  soldier. 


THESEALIONS.  63 

As  a  matter  of  course,  the  stranger  was  invited  to  take 
his  seat  at  the  table.  This  he  did  without  using  many 
phrases;  and  Mary  had  reason  to  believe,  by  his  appetite, 
that  he  thought  well  of  her  culinary  skill.  There  was  very 
little  of  the  sheepshead  left  when  this,  its  last  assailant, 
shoved  his  plate  back,  the  signal  that  he  could  do  no  more. 
He  then  finished  a  glass  of  rum-and-water,  and  seemed  to 
be  in  a  good  condition  to  transact  the  business  that  had 
brought  him  there.  Until  this  moment,  he  had  made  no 
allusion  to  the  motive  of  his  visit,  leaving  the  deacon  full 
of  conjectures. 

"  The  fish  of  Peconic  and  Gar'ner's  is  as  good  as  any  1 
know,"  coolly  observed  this  worthy,  after  certainly  having 
established  some  claim  to  give  an  opinion  on  the  subject. 
"  We  think  ourselves  pretty  well  off,  in  this  respect,  on  the 
Vineyard—" 

"  On  the  Vineyard !"  interrupted  the  deacon,  without 
waiting  to  hear  what  was  to  follow. 

"Yes,  sir,  on  Martha's  Vineyard — for  that's  the  place 
I  come  from.  Perhaps  I  ought  to  have  introduced  myself 
a  little  more  particularity — I  come  from  Martha's  Vineyard, 
and  my  name  is  Daggett." 

The  deacon  fairly  permitted  the  knife,  with  which  he  was 
spreading  some  butter,  to  fall  upon  his  plate.  "  Daggett" 
and  the  "  Vineyard"  sounded  ominously.  Could  it  be  that 
Dr.  Sage  had  managed  to  get  a  message  so  far,  in  so  short 
a  time ;  and  had  this  amphibious  inhabitant  of  the  neigh 
bouring  island  come  already  to  rob  him  of  his  treasure? 
The  perceptions  of  the  deacon,  at  first,  were  far  from  clear ; 
and  he  even  imagined  that  all  he  had  expended  on  the  Sea 
Lion  was  thrown  away,  and  that  he  might  be  even  called 
on  to  give  some  sort  of  an  account,  in  a  court  of  chancery, 
of  the  information  obtained  from  the  deceased.  A  little 
reflection,  however,  sufficed  to  get  the  better  of  this  weak 
ness,  and  he  made  a  civil  inclination  of  his  head,  as  much 
as  to  tell  the  stranger,  notwithstanding  his  name  and  place 
of  residence,  that  he  was  welcome.  Of  course  no  one  but 
the  deacon  himself  knew  of  the  thoughts  that  troubled  him, 
and  after  a  very  brief  delay,  the  guest  proceeded  with  his 
explanations  of  the  object  of  his  visit. 

"  The  Daggetts  are  pretty  numerous  on  the  Vineyard," 
6* 


64  THESEALIONS. 

continued  the  stranger,  "  and  when  you  name  one  of  them 
it  is  not  always  easy  to  tell  just  what  family  he  belongs  to. 
One  of  our  coasters  came  into  the  Hull  (Holmes'  Hole  was 
meant)  a  few  weeks  since,  and  reported  that  she  spoke  an 
inward-bound  brig,  off  New  Haven,  from  which  she  heard 
that  the  people  of  that  craft  had  put  ashore,  at  Oyster  Pond, 
a  seafaring  man,  who  belonged  to  the  Vineyard,  and  who 
was  bound  home,  arter  an  absence  of  fifty  years,  and  whose 
name  was  Thomas  Daggett.  The  word  passed  through 
the  island,  and  a  great  Btir  it  made  among  aJl  us  Daggetts. 
There's  plenty  of  our  Vineyard  people  wandering^ about 
the  'arth,  and  sometimes  one  drops  in  upon  the  island,  just 
to  die.  As  most  of  them  that  come  back  bring  something 
with  them,  it's  gen'rally  thought  a  good  sign  to  hear  of 
their  arrival.  After  casting  about,  and  talking  with  all  the 
old  folks,  it  has  been  concluded  that  this  Thomas  Daggett 
must  be  a  brother  of  my  father's,  who  went  to  sea  about 
fifty  years  since,  and  has  never  been  seen  or  heard  of  since. 
He  's  the  only  person  of  the  name  for  whom  we  can't  ac 
count,  and  the  family  have  got  me  to  come  across  to  look 
him  up." 

"  I  am  sorry,  Mr.  Daggett,  that  you  are  so  late,"  an 
swered  the  deacon,  slowly,  as  if  unwilling  to  give  pain. 
if  Had  you  come  last  week,  you  might  have  seen  and  con 
versed  with  your  relation ;  or  had  you  come  early  this 
morning,  only,  you  might  have  attended  his  funeral.  He 
came  among  us  a  stranger,  and  we  endeavoured  to  imitate 
the  conduct  of  the  good  Samaritan.  I  believe  he  had  all 
the  comforts  that  Oyster  Pond  can  give;  and,  certainly, 
he  had  the  best  advice.  Dr.  Sage,  of  Sag  Harbour,  at 
tended  him  in  his  last  illness — Dr.  Sage,  of  the  Harbour : 
doubtless  you  have  heard  him  mentioned?" 

«CI  know  him  by  reputation,  and  make  no  doubt  all  was 
done  that  could  be  done.  As  the  sloop  I  named  "lay  by  the 
brig  some  time,  in  a  calm,  the  two  captains  had  a  long  talk 
together ;  and  ours  had  prepared  us  to  hear  of  our  kins 
man's  speedy  dissolution.  He  was  in  a  decline  when  he 
landed,  and  we  suppose  that  no  human  skill  could  have 
saved  him.  As  he  had  so  skilful  a  physician,  and  one  who 
came  so  far,  I  suppose  my  uncle  must  have  left  pro 
perty  !" 


THE     SEA     LIONS.  65 

This  was  a  home-thrust ;  but,  fortunately  tor  the  deacon, 
he  had  already  prepared  himself  with  an  answer. 

"  Sea-faring  men,  that  are  landed  on  points  and  capes, 
from  inward-bound  vessels,  are  not  very  apt  to  be  over 
loaded  with  worldly  goods,"  he  said,  smiling.  "  When  a 
man  prospers  in  that  calling,  he  usually  comes  ashore  at  a 
wharf,  in  some  large  place,  and  gets  into  his  coach,  to  ride 
up  to  some  grand  tavern !  I  have  remarked,  pastor,  that 
eea-faring  men  love  comforts  and  free-living,  unaccount 
ably,  when  they  can  fairly  get  a  chance  at  'em." 

"  That  is  natural,  deacon — quite  natural ;  and  what  is 
natural,  is  very  likely  to  happen.  The  natural  man  loves 
all  sorts  of  indulgences,  and  these  among  others." 

As  there  was  no  gainsaying  this  commonplace  commen 
tary  on  the  species,  it  was  permitted  to  pass  unanswered. 

"  I  hope  my  kinsman  has  not  been  a  burthen  to  any  on 
Oyster  Pond?"  said  the  nephew,  inquiringly. 

"  1  cannot  say  that  he  has,"  returned  the  deacon.  "  He 
was  at  little  cost,  at  first,  and  got  along  by  selling  a  few 
odd  things  that  he  owned.  As  Providence  had  placed  him 
in  the  dwelling  of  a  poor  widow,  I  thought  it  might  be 
pleasing  to  the  friends — and  every  man  has  some  friends,  I 
suppose — to  settle  with  her.  This  I  did,  this  very  morn 
ing,  taking  her  receipt  in  full,  as  you  can  see,"  passing  the 
paper  to  the  stranger.  "  As  a  sort  of  security  for  my  ad 
vances,  I  had  the  chest  of  the  deceased  removed  to  this 
house ;  and  it  is  now  up-stairs,  ready  to  be  examined.  It 
feels  light,  and  I  do  not  think  much  silver  or  gold  will  be 
found  in  it." 

To  own  the  truth,  the  Vineyard  seaman  looked  a  little 
disappointed.  It  was  so  natural  that  a  man  who  has  been 
absent  fifty  years  should  bring  back  the  fruits  of  his  labour, 
that  he  had  expected  some  slight  reward  for  the  trouble  he 
was  now  taking,  to  be  bestowed  in  this  particular  form. 
This,  however,  was  not  the  specific  object  of  his  visit,  as 
will  appear  as  we  proceed.  Keeping  in  view  his  real  mo 
tive,  the  nephew  continued  his  inquiries,  always  putting 
his  questions  a  little  indirectly,  and  receiving  answers  that 
were  as  evasive  and  cautious  as  his  own  interrogatories. 
All  this  was  characteristic  of  the  wary  people  from  which 
both  had  sprung,  who  seldom  speak,  in  a  matter  of  busi- 


66  THESEALIONS. 

ness,  without  bearing  in  mind  all  the  possible  constructions 
of  what  they  are  saying.  After  a  discourse  of  some  fif 
teen  minutes,  in  which  the  history  of  the  chest,  in  its  out 
lines*  was  fully  given,  and  during  which  the  stranger  pro 
duced  written  evidence  of  his  right  to  interfere,  it  was  de 
termined  to  make  an  inventory,  on  the  spot,  of  the  property 
left  by  Daggett,  for  the  benefit  of  all  who  might  have  any 
interest  in  it.  Accordingly,  the  whole  party,  including 
Mary,  was  soon  assembled  in  the  deacon's  own  room,  with 
the  sea-chest  placed  invitingly  in  the  centre.  All  eyes 
were  fastened  on  the  lid,  in  curious  anticipations  of  the 
contents;  for,  the  deacon  excepted,  all  supposed  that  those 
contents  were  a  profound  secret.  The  Widow  White  could 
have  told  them  better,  she  having  rummaged  that  chest  a 
dozen  times,  at  least,  though  without  abstracting  even  a 
pin.  Curiosity  had  been  her  ruling  motive,  far  more  than 
cupidity.  It  is  true,  the  good  woman  had  a  prudent  regard 
to  her  own  interests,  and  felt  some  anxiety  to  learn  the 
prospects  of  her  receiving  the  stipulated  price  for  board — 
only  $1  50  per  week — but  the  sales  of  the  needles,  and 
palms,  and  carved  whale-bone,  having  kept  her  accounts 
reasonably  square,  solicitude  on  this  particular  interest  was 
not  at  is  height.  No:  curiosity,  pure  female  curiosity,  a 
little  quickened  by  the  passion  which  is  engendered  among 
the  vulgar  by  the  possession  of  a  slight  degree  of  instruc 
tion,  was  really  at  the  bottom  of  her  researches.  Not  only 
had  she  handled  every  article  in  the  chest,  but  she  had 
read,  and  re-read,  every  paper  it  contained,  half-a-dozen 
letters  included,  and  made  her  own  surmises  on  their  na 
ture.  Still,  the  good  woman  was  very  little  the  wiser  for 
her  inquiries.  Of  the  great  secret  she  knew  absolutely 
nothing,  unless  the  broken  hints  collected  in  her  many 
listenings,  could  be  so  considered.  But,  here  her  igno 
rance  ceased.  Every  hole  in  a  shirt,  every  patch  in  a  pair 
of  trousers,  and  every  darn  in  a  stocking,  had  been  ex 
amined,  and  its  probable  effect  on  the  value  of  the  garment 
duly  estimated.  The  only  thing  that  had  escaped  her  scru 
tiny  was  a  small  till,  that  was  locked.  Into  that  she  could 
not  look,  and  there  were  moments  when  she  would  have 
parted  with  a  finger  in  order  to  overhaul  it. 

"  This  jacket  might  sell  for  a  dollar,"  had  the  Widow 


THESEALIONS.  67 

White  calculated,  "but  for  the  hole  in  the  elbow;  and, 
that  well  patched,  would  bring  seventy-five  cents.  Them 
trowsers  must  have  cost  two  dollars,  but  they  ar'n't  worth 
half  price  now.  That  pee-jacket  is  the  best  article  in  the 
chest,  and,  sent  across  to  the  Harbour,  about  the  time  the 
ships  are  going  out,  it  would  bring  enough  to  maintain 
Daggett  a  month !" 

Such  had  been  the  character  of  the  widow's  visitations 
to  the  chest,  though  no  one  knew  anything  of  her  disco 
veries,  not  even  her  sister-relict,  neighbour  Stone. 

"  Here  is  the  key,"  said  the  deacon,  producing  that  in 
strument  from  the  drawer  of  a  table,  as  if  he  had  laid  it 
carefully  aside  for  some  such  moment.  "  I  dare  say  it  will 
be  found  to  fit,  for  I  remember  to  have  seen  Daggett  use  it 
once  or  twice  myself." 

Roswell  Gardiner,  as  the  youngest  man,  and  the  one  on 
whom  the  labouring  oar  ought  to  fall,  now  took  the  key, 
applied  it  to  the  lock,  turned  it  without  difficulty,  and  then 
lifted  the  lid.  Disappointment  appeared  on  every  face  but 
that  of  the  deacon,  at  the  meagre  prospect  before  the  com 
pany.  Not  only  was  the  chest  more  than  half  empty,  but 
the  articles  it  did  contain  were  of  the  coarsest  materials  ; 
well  worn  sea-clothes  that  had  seen  their  best  days,  and 
which  had  never  been  more  than  the  coarse  common  attire 
of  a  foremast  hand. 

"  There  is  little  here  to  pay  a  man  for  crossing  from  the 
Vineyard,"  observed  Roswell  Gardiner,  a  little  drily ;  for 
he  did  not  half  like  the  appearance  of  cupidity  that  shone 
through  the  nephew's  tardy  concern  for  the  fate  of  the 
uncle.  "  The  last  voyage  has  not  been  prosperous,  I  fear, 
or  the  owners  failed  before  the  vessel  got  in  !  What  is  to 
be  done  with  all  this  dunnage,  deacon?" 

"  It  would  be  best  to  take  out  the  contents,  article  by 
article,"  answered  the  other,  "  and  examine  each  and  all. 
Now  that  we  have  made  a  beginning  with  the  inventory,  it 
is  best  to  go  through  with  it." 

The  young  man  obeyed,  calling  out  the  name  of  each 
article  of  dress,  as  he  raised  it  from  its  receptacle,  and 
passing  it  over  to  him  who  stood  there  in  the  character  of 
a  sort  of  heir-at-law.  The  last  gave  each  garment  a  sharp 
look,  and  prudently  put  his  hand  into  every  pocket,  in 


68  THE    SEA    LIOHS. 

order  to  make  sure  that  it  was  empty,  before  he  laid  the 
article  on  the  floor.  Nothing  was  discovered  for  some 
time,  until  a  small  key  was  found  in  the  fob  of  a  pair  of  old 
'  go-ashore'  pantaloons.  As  there  was  the  till  to  the  chest 
already  mentioned,  and  a  lock  on  that  till,  the  heir-at-law 
kept  the  key,  saying  nothing  touching  its  existence. 

"  The  deceased  does  not  appear  to  have  been  much 
afflicted  with  this  world's  wealth,"  said  the  Rev.  Mr. 
Whittle,  whose  expectations,  to  own  the  truth,  had  been  a 
little  disappointed.  "  This  may  have  been  all  the  better  for 
him,  when  the  moment  of  departure  drew  near." 

"  I  dare  say  he  would  have  borne  the  burthen  cheerfully," 
put  in  Roswell  Gardiner,  "  to  have  been  a  little  more  com 
fortable.  I  never  knew  a  person,  seaman  or  landsman,  who 
was  ever  the  worse  for  having  things  snug  about  him,  and 
for  holding  on  to  the  better  end  of  his  cheer,  as  long  as  he 
could." 

"  Your  notion  of  what  is  best  for  man  as  he  draws  near 
to  his  end,  captain  Gar'ner,  is  not  likely  to  be  of  the  most 
approved  nature.  The  sea  does  not  produce  many  very 
orthodox  divines." 

The  young  sailor  coloured,  bit  his  lip,  cast  a  glance  at 
Mary,  and  began  a  nearly  inaudible  whistle.  In  a  moment 
he  forgot  the  rebuke  he  had  received,  and  laughingly  went 
on  with  the  inventory. 

"Well,"  he  cried,  "this  is  rather  a  poorer  outfit  than 
Jack  is  apt  to  carry !  7«fit,  I  suppose  it  should  be  called, 
as  the  poor  fellow  who  owned  it  was  inward  bound,  when 
he  brought  up  on  Oyster  Pond.  You  '11  hardly  think  it 
worth  while,  captain  Daggett,  to  take  this  dunnage  across 
to  the  Vineyard." 

"  It  is  scarce  worth  the  trouble,  though  friends  and  rela 
tions  may  set  a  value  on  it  that  strangers  do  riot.  I  see  a 
couple  of  charts  there  —  will  you  hand  them  this  way,  if 
you  please?  They  may  have  a  value  with  a  sea-faring  man, 
as  old  mariners  sometimes  make  notes  that  are  worth  as 
much  as  the  charts  themselves." 

This  was  said  very  naturally  and  simply ;  but  it  gave  the 
deacon  a  good  deal  of  concern.  Nor  was  this  feeling  at  all 
lessened  by  the  earnest,  not  to  say  eager,  manner  in  which 
Daggett,  as  we  shall  now  call  this  member  of  the  family, 


THESEALIONS.  69 

spread  the  chart  on  the  bed,  and  began  to  pry  into  its  re 
cords.  The  particular  chart  first  opened  in  this  way,  was  the 
one  including  the  antarctic  circle,  and,  of  course,  was  that 
from  which  the  deacon  had  been  at  so  much  pains  to  erase 
the  sealing-islands,  that  the  deceased  mariner  had  laid 
down  with  so  great  precision  and  care.  It  was  evident 
that  the  Martha's  Vineyard-man  was  looking  for  something 
that  he  could  not  find,  and  that  he  felt  disappointment.  In 
stead  of  looking  at  the  chart,  indeed,  he  may  be  said  to  have 
been  peering  at  it,  in  all  its  holes  and  crannies,  of  which 
there  were  not  a  few,  in  consequence  of  the  torn  condition 
of  the  paper.  Several  minutes  elapsed  ere  the  investigation 
terminated,  the  stranger  seeming,  all  that  time,  to  feel  no 
interest  in  the  remainder  of  his  relation's  wardrobe. 

"  This  is  an  old  chart,  and  of  the  date  of  1802,"  ob 
served  Daggett,  raising  himself  erect,  as  a  man  who  has 
long  been  bent  takes  the  creaks  out  of  his  back.  "  So  old 
a  chart  as  to  be  of  little  use  now-a-day.  Our  sealers  have 
gone  over  so  much  of  the  ground  to  the  southward  of  the 
two  capes,  as  to  be  able  to  do  much  better  than  this  now." 

"  Your  uncle  had  the  appearance  of  an  old-fashioned 
sailor,"  coldly  observed  the  deacon ;  "  and  it  may  be  that 
he  most  liked  old-fashioned  charts." 

"  If  such  was  the  case  he  must  have  pretty  well  forgotten 
his  Vineyard  schooling.  There  is  not  a  woman  there  who 
doesn't  know  that  the  latest  chart  is  commonly  the  best.  I 
own  I'm  disapp'inted  somewhat;  for  the  master  of  the 
sloop  gave  me  to  understand  he  had  heard  from  the  master 
of  the  brig,  that  some  valuable  information  was  to  be  found 
on  the  old  gentleman's  charts." 

The  deacon  started,  as  here  was  an  indication  that  the 
deceased  had  talked  of  his  knowledge  to  others,  as  well  as 
to  himself!  It  was  so  natural  for  a  man  like  Daggett  to 
boast  of  what  his  charts  were  worth,  that  he  saw  the  ex 
treme  probability  that  a  difficulty  might  arise  from  this 
source.  It  was  his  cue,  however,  to  remain  silent,  and  let 
the  truth  develop  itself  in  due  course.  His  attention  was 
not  likely  to  be  drawn  aside  by  the  shirts  and  old  clothes, 
for  the  stranger  began  a  second  time  to  examine  the  chart, 
and  what  was  more,  in  the  high  latitudes  at  no  great  dis 
tance  from  the  very  spot  where  the  sealing-islands  had 


70  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

been  placed,  and  from  which  they  had  been  so  carefully 
erased. 

"  It  is  unaccountable  that  a  man  should  wear  out  a  chart 
like  this,  and  leave  so  few  notes  on  it !"  said  the  Vineyard- 
man,  much  as  one  complains  of  a  delinquency.  "  Here  is 
white  water  noted  in  the  middle  of  the  ocean,  where  I  dare 
say  no  other  white  water  was  seen  but  that  which  is  made 
by  a  fish,  and  nothing  is  said  of  any  islands.  What  do  you 
think  of  this,  captain  Gar'ner  ?"  laying  his  finger  on  the 
precise  spot  where  the  deacon  had  been  at  work  so  long 
that  very  morning  erasing  the  islands.  "  This  looks  well- 
fingered,  if  nothing  else,  eh?" 

u  Its  a  shoal  laid  down  in  dirt,"  answered  Roswell  Gar 
diner,  laughing  —  "Let's  see;  that's  about  lat.  — ° — ", 
and  long.  — °  — ".  There  can  be  i>o  known  land  there 
away,  as  even  captain  Cook  did  not  succeed  in  getting  as 
far  south.  That 's  been  a  favourite  spot  with  the  skipper 
for  taking  hold  of  his  chart.  I  've  known  one  of  those  old- 
fashioned  chaps  put  his  hand  on  a  chart,  in  that  way,  and 
never  miss  his  holding  ground  for  three  years  on  a  stretch. 
Mighty  go-by-rule  people  are  some  of  our  whaling-masters, 
in  particular,  who  think  they  know  the  countenances  of 
some  of  the  elderly  fish,  who  are  too  cunning  to  let  a  har 
poon  get  fast  to  'em." 

"You've  been  often  in  them  seas,  I  some  think,  captain 
Gar'ner?"  said  the  other,  inquiringly. 

"  I  was  brought  up  in  the  business,  and  have  a  hanker 
ing  for  it  yet,"  returned  the  young  man,  frankly.  "Mor 
do  I  care  so  much  for  charts.  They  are  well  enough  when 
a  vessel  is  on  her  road ;  but,  as  for  whales  or  seals,  the 
man  who  wishes  to  find  either,  in  these  times,  has  to  look 
for  them,  as  I  tell  my  owner.  According  to  reports,  the 
time  has  been  when  a  craft  had  only  to  get  an  offing  to  fall 
in  with  something  that  was  worth  putting  a  harpoon  into ; 
but  those  days  are  gone,  captain  Daggett ;  and  whales  are 
to  be  looked  after,  out  at  sea,  much  as  money  is  to  be  looked 
for  ashore  here." 

"  Is  the  craft  I  saw  at  the  wharf  fitting  out  for  a  whaler, 
then?" 

"  She  is  going  after  luck,  and  will  accept  of  it,  in  what 
ever  form  it  may  turn  up." 


THE     SEA     LIONS.  71 

"  She  is  rather  small  for  the  whaling  business,  though 
vessels  of  that  size  have  done  well,  by  keeping  close  in 
upon  our  own  coast." 

"  We  shall  know  better  what  she  will  do  after  she  has 
been  tried,"  returned  Gardiner,  evasively.  "  What  do  you 
think  of  her  for  the  Banks  of  Newfoundland?" 

The  Martha's  Vineyard-man  gave  his  brother  tar  a  quick, 
impatient  glance,  which  pretty  plainly  said,  "  tell  that  to 
the  marines,"  when  he  opened  the  second  chart,  which  as 
yet  had  been  neglected. 

"  Sure  enough,"  he  muttered,  in  a  low  tone,  though 
loud  enough  to  be  heard  by  the  keenly  attentive  deacon ; 
"  here  it  is  —  a  chart  of  the  West  Indies,  and  of  all  the 
keys !" 

By  this  casual,  spontaneous  outbreaking,  as  it  might  be, 
the  deacon  got  another  clue  to  the  stranger's  knowledge, 
that  gave  him  increased  uneasiness.  He  was  now  con 
vinced  that,  by  means  of  the  masters  of  the  brig  and  the 
sloop,  such  information  had  been  sent  to  the  relatives  of 
Daggett  as  had  prepared  them  to  expect  the  very  revela 
tions  on  which  he  hoped  to  establish  his  own  fortunes.  To 
what  extent  these  revelations  had  been  made,  of  course  he 
could  only  conjecture ;  but  there  must  have  been  a  good 
deal  of  particularity  to  induce  the  individual  who  had  come 
over  to  Oyster  Pond  to  look  into  the  two  charts  so  closely. 
Under  the  circumstances,  therefore,  he  felicitated  himself  on 
the  precaution  he  had  so  early  taken  to  erase  the  important 
notations  from  the  paper. 

"  Captain  Gar'ner,  your  eyes  are  younger  than  mine," 
said  the  Vineyard-man,  holding  the  chart  up  to  the  light — 
fi  will  you  be  good  enough  to  look  here  ? — does  it  not  seem 
as  if  that  key  had  been  noted,  and  the  words  rubbed  off  the 
chart?" 

This  caused  the  deacon  to  peer  over  Roswell  Gardiner's 
shoulder,  and  glad  enough  was  he  to  ascertain  that  the 
stranger  had  placed  his  ringer  on  a  key  that  must  lie  se 
veral  hundred  miles  from  that  which  was  supposed  to  hold 
the  buried  treasure  of  the  pirates.  Something  like  an 
erasure  did  appear  at  the  indicated  point;  but  the  chart 
was  so  old  and  dirty,  that  little  satisfaction  could  be  had  by 
examining  it.  Should  the  inquirer  settle  down  on  the  key 


72  THESEALIONS. 

he  evidently  had  in  his  eye,  all  would  be  well,  since  it  was 
far  enough  from  the  spot  really  noted. 

"  It  is  strange  that  so  old  a  seafaring  man  should  wear 
out  a  chart,  and  make  no  observation  on  it !"  repeated  the 
stranger,  who  was  both  vexed  and  at  a  loss  what  to  conjec 
ture.  "  All  my  charts  are  written  over  and  marked  off,  just 
as  if  I  meant  to  get  out  an  edition  for  myself." 

"  Men  differ  in  their  tastes  and  habits,"  answered  Roa- 
well  Gardiner,  carelessly.  "  Some  navigators  are  for  ever 
finding  rocks,  and  white  water,  and  scribbling  on  their 
charts,  or  in  the  newspapers,  when  they  get  back ;  but  I 
never  knew  any  good  come  of  it.  The  men  who  make  the 
charts  are  most  to  be  trusted.  For  my  part,  I  would  not 
give  a  sixpence  for  a  note  made  by  a  man  who  passes  a 
shoal  or  a  rock,  in  a  squall  or  a  gale." 

"  What  would  you  say  to  the  note  of  a  sealer  who  should 
lay  down  an  island  where  the  seals  lie  about  on  the  beach 
like  pigs  in  a  pen,  sunning  themselves?  Would  you  not 
call  a  chart  so  noted  a  treasure?" 

"  That  would  alter  the  case,  sure  enough,"  returned 
Gardiner,  laughing  ;  "  though  I  should  not  think  of  look 
ing  into  this  chest  for  any  such  riches.  Most  of  our  masters 
navigate  too  much  at  random  to  make  their  charts  of  any 
great  value.  They  can  find  the  places  they  look  for  them 
selves,  but  don't  seem  to  know  how  to  tell  other  people  the 
road.  I  have  known  my  old  man  lay  down  a  shoal  that  he 
fancied  he  saw,  quite  a  degree  out  of  the  way.  Now  such 
a  note  as  that  would  do  more  harm  than  good.  It  might 
make  a  foul  wind  of  a  fair  one,  and  cause  a  fellow  to  go 
about,  or  ware  ship,  when  there  was  not  the  least  occasion 
in  the  world  for  doing  anything  of  the  sort." 

"Ay,  ay  ;  this  will  do  for  nervous  men,  who  are  always 
thinking  they  see  danger  ahead;  but  it  is  different  with 
islands  that  a  craft  has  actually  visited.  I  do  not  see  much 
use,  Deacon  Pratt,  in  your  £,  ving  yourself  any  further  trou 
ble.  My  uncle  was  not  a  very  rich  man,  I  perceive,  and  I 
must  go  to  work  and  make  my  own  fortune  if  I  wish  more 
than  I  've  got  already.  If  there  is  any  demand  against  the 
deceased,  I  am  ready  to  discharge  it." 

This  was  coming  so  much  to  the  point  that  the  deacon 
hardly  knew  what  to  make  of  it.  He  recollected  his  own 


THESEALIONS.  73 

ten  dollars,  and  the  covetousness  of  his  disposition  so  far 
got  the  better  of  his  prudence  as  to  induce  him  to  mention 
the  circumstance. 

"  Dr.  Sage  may  have  a  charge  —  no  doubt  has  one,  that 
ought  to  be  settled,  but  your  uncle  mainly  paid  his  way  as 
he  went  on.  I  thought  the  widow  who  took  care  of  him 
was  entitled  to  something  extra,  and  I  handed  her  ten  dol 
lars  this  morning,  which  you  may  repay  to  me  or  not,  just 
as  you  please." 

Captain  Daggett  drew  forth  his  wallet  and  discharged 
the  obligation  on  the  spot.  He  then  replaced  the  charts, 
and,  without  opening  the  till  of  the  chest,  he  shut  down 
the  lid,  locked  it,  and  put  the  key  in  his  pocket,  saying 
that  he  would  cause  the  whole  to  be  removed,  much  as  if 
he  felt  anxious  to  relieve  the  deacon  of  an  incumbrance. 
This  done,  he  asked  a  direction  to  the  dwelling  of  the 
Widow  White,  with  whom  he  wished  to  converse,  ere  he 
left  the  Point. 

"  I  shall  have  the  questions  of  so  many  cousins  to  an 
swer,  when  I  get  home,"  he  said,  smiling,  "  that  it  will 
never  do  for  me  to  go  back  without  taking  all  the  talk  I 
can  get  with  me.  If  you  will  be  kind  enough  to  show  me 
the  way,  captain  Gar'ner,  I  will  promise  to  do  as  much  for 
you,  when  you  come  to  hunt  up  the  leavings  of  some  old 
relation  on  the  Vineyard." 

Roswell  Gardiner  very  cheerfully  complied,  not  observing 
the  look  of  dissatisfaction  with  which  his  owner  listened  to 
the  request.  Away  the  two  went,  then,  and  were  soon  at 
the  widow's  door.  Here  the  young  man  left  his  companion, 
having  duty  to  attend  to  on  board  the  Sea  Lion.  The 
Widow  White  received  her  guest  with  lively  interest,  it 
forming  one  of  the  greatest  pleasures  of  her  existence  to 
be  imparting  and  receiving  intelligence. 

"  I  dare  say  you  found  my  uncle  a  companionable  man," 
observed  the  captain,  as  soon  as  amicable  relations  were 
established  between  the  parties,  by  means  of  a  few  flatter 
ing  remarks  on  one  side  and  on  the  other.  "  The  Vineyard 
folks  are  generally  quite  conversable." 

"  That  he  was,  captain  Daggett ;  and  when  the  deacon 
had  not  been  over  to  perplex  him,  and  wake  up  the  worldly 
spirit  in  him,  he  was  as  well  inclined  to  preparation  as  any 


74  THESEALIONS. 

eick  person  I  ever  waited  on.  To  be  sure  it  was  different 
arter  the  deacon  had  paid  one  of  his  visits." 

"  Was  Deacon  Pratt  in  the  habit  of  coming  to  read  and 
pray  with  the  sick?" 

"  He  pray !  I  don't  believe  he  as  much  as  went  through 
a  single  sentence  of  a  prayer  in  all  his  visits.  Their  whull 
talk  was  about  islands  and  seals,  when  they  was  by  them 
selves." 

"  Indeed !"  exclaimed  the  nephew,  manifesting  a  new 
interest  in  the  discourse.  "And  what  could  they  find  to 
say  on  such  subjects?  Islands  and  seals  were  a  strange 
topic  for  a  dying  man !" 

"  I  know  it" — answered  the  widow,  sharply.  "  I  know'd 
it  at  the  time ;  but  what  could  a  lone  woman  do  to  set  'em 
right;  and  he  a  deacon  of  the  meetin'  the  whull  time?  If 
they  would  talk  of  worldly  things  at  such  times,  it  wasn't 
for  one  like  me  to  put  'em  right." 

"  Then  this  discourse  was  held  openly  in  your  presence— 
before  your  face,  as  it  might  be,  ma'am?" 

"I  can't  say  that  it  was  just  that;  nor  was  it  altogether 
when  my  back  was  turned.  They  talked,  and  I  overheard 
what  was  said,  as  will  happen  when  a  body  is  about,  you 
know." 

The  stranger  did  not  press  the  point,  having  been  brought 
up  in  what  might  almost  be  termed  a  land  of  listeners. 
An  island,  that  is  cut  off  from  much  communication  with 
the  rest  of  the  earth,  and  from  which  two-thirds  of  the 
males  must  be  periodically  absent,  would  be  very  likely  to 
reach  perfection  in  the  art  of  gossiping,  which  includes 
that  of  the  listener. 

"  Yes,"  he  answered,  "  one  picks  up  a  good  deal,  he 
doesn't  know  how.  So  they  talked  of  islands  and  seals?" 

Thus  questioned,  the  widow  cheerfully  opened  her  stores 
of  knowledge.  As  she  proceeded  in  her  account  of  the 
secret  conferences  between  Deacon  Pratt  and  her  late  in 
mate,  her  zeal  became  quickened,  and  she  omitted  nothing 
that  she  had  ever  heard,  besides  including  a  great  deal  that 
she  had  not  heard.  But  her  companion  was  accustomed 
to  such  narratives,  and  knew  reasonably  well  how  to  make 
allowances.  He  listened  with  a  determination  not  to  be 
lieve  more  than  half  of  what  she  said,  and  by  dint  of  long 


THE    SEA    LIONS.  75 

experience,  he  succeeded  in  separating  the  credible  por 
tions  of  the  woman's  almost  breathless  accounts,  from  those 
that  ought  to  have  been  regarded  as  incredible,  with  a  sur 
prising  degree  of  success.  The  greatest  difficulty  in  the 
way  of  comprehending  the  Widow  White's  report,  arose 
from  the  fact  that  she  had  altogether  missed  the  preliminary 
and  most  explicit  conference.  This  left  so  much  to  be 
understood  and  inferred,  that,  in  her  own  efforts  to  supply 
the  deficiencies,  she  made  a  great  deal  of  confusion  in  the 
statements.  Captain  Daggett  was  fully  assured  that  the 
deacon  knew  of  the  existence  of  the  sealing-island,  at  least ; 
though  he  was  in  doubt  whether  the  rumour  that  had  been 
brought  to  him,  touching  the  buried  treasure,  had  also  been 
imparted  to  this  person.  The  purchase  and  equipment  of 
the  Sea  Lion,  taken  in  connection  with  the  widow's  ac 
count,  were  enough,  of  themselves,  to  convince  one  of  his 
experience  and  foresight,  that  an  expedition  after  seal  was 
then  fitting  out,  on  the  information  derived  from  his  de 
ceased  relative.  Of  this  much  he  had  no  doubt ;  but  he 
was  not  able  to  assure  himself,  quite  so  satisfactorily,  that 
the  key  was  to  be  looked  at  by  the  way. 

The  interview  between  Captain  Daggett  and  the  Widow 
White  lasted  more  than  an  hour.  In  that  time  the  former 
had  gleaned  all  the  information  the  latter  could  give,  and 
they  parted  on  the  best  terms  in  the  world.  It  is  true  that 
the  captain  gave  the  widow  nothing — he  had  acquitted  his 
conscience  on  this  score,  by  re-paying  the  deacon  the 
money  the  last  had  advanced — but  he  listened  in  the  most 
exemplary  manner  to  all  she  had  to  say;  and,  with  a  cer 
tain  class  of  vehement  talkers,  the  most  favoured  being  in 
the  world  is  your  good  listener.  Interest  had  given  the 
stranger  an  air  of  great  attention,  and  the  delighted  woman 
had  poured  out  her  torrent  of  words  in  a  way  that  gratified, 
in  the  highest  degree,  her  intense  desire  to  be  imparting 
information.  When  they  separated,  it  was  with  an  under 
standing  that  letters,  on  the  same  interesting  subject, 
should  pass  between  them. 

That  afternoon,  Captain  Daggett  found  means  to  remove 
the  chest  of  his  late  kinsman,  across  the  bays,  to  Sag  Har 
bour,  whither  he  proceeded  himself  by  the  same  convey 
ance.  There,  he  passed  an  hour  or  two  in  making  inqui- 


76  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

ries  touching  the  state  of  equipment,  and  the  probable  time 
of  the  departure  of  the  Sea  Lion.  The  fitting  out  of  this 
schooner  was  the  cause  of  a  good  deal  of  discourse  in  all 
that  region,  and  the  Martha's  Vineyard-man  heard  num 
berless  conjectures,  but  very  little  accurate  information. 
On  the  whole,  however,  he  arrived  at  the  conclusion  that 
the  Sea  Lion  would  sail  within  the  next  ten  days ;  that  her 
voyage  was  to  be  distant ;  that  her  absence  was  expected 
to  exceed  a  twelvemonth ;  and  that  it  was  thought  she  had 
some  other  scheme  in  view,  in  addition  to  that  of  sealing. 
That  night,  this  hardy  mariner — half  agriculturist  as  he 
was — got  into  his  whale-boat,  and  sailed  for  the  Vineyard, 
all  alone,  taking  the  chest  with  him.  This  was  nothing, 
however ;  for  quite  often,  before,  had  he  been  off  at  sea,  in 
his  boat,  alone,  looking  out  for  inward-bound  vessels  to 
pilot. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

"  Launch  thy  bark,  mariner ! 

Christian,  God  speed  thee ! 
Let  loose  the  rudder-bands, 

Good  angels  lead  thee ! 
Set  thy  sails  warily, 

Tempests  will  come; 
Steer  thy  course  steadily, 

Christian,  steer  home  1" 

MRS.  SOUTHET. 

THE  visit  of  Captain  Daggett,  taken  in  connection  with 
all  that  he  had  said  and  done,  while  on  Oyster  Pond,  and 
at  Sag  Harbour,  had  the  effect  greatly  to  hasten  the  equip 
ments  of  the  Sea  Lion.  Deacon  Pratt  knew  the  characters 
of  the  seamen  of  the  island  too  well,  to  trifle  in  a  matter 
of  so  much  moment.  How  much  the  Vineyard  folk  had 
been  told,  in  reference  to  his  great  secrets,  he  did  not 
know ;  but  he  felt  assured  that  they  knew  enough,  and  had 
learned  enough  in  this  visit,  to  quicken  all  their  desires  for 
riches,  and  to  set  them  in  motion  towards  the  antarctic 


THE     SEA    LIONS.  77 

circle.  With  such  a  people,  distance  and  difficulties  are 
of  no  account;  a  man  who  has  been  cradling  oats,  to-day, 
in  his  own  retired  fields,  where  one  would  think  ambition 
and  the  love  of  change  could  never  penetrate,  being  ready 
to  quit  home  at  twenty-four  hours'  notice,  assuming  the 
marlingspike  as  he  lays  aside  the  fork,  and  setting  forth  for 
the  uttermost  confines  of  the  earth,  with  as  little  hesitation 
as  another  might  quit  his  home  for  an  ordinary  journey  of 
a  week.  Such,  did  the  deacon  well  know,  was  the  charac 
ter  of  those  with  whom  he  had  now  to  deal,  and  he  foresaw 
the  necessity  of  the  utmost  caution,  perseverance,  dili 
gence,  and  activity. 

Philip  Hazard,  the  mate  mentioned  by  Roswell  Gardiner, 
was  enjoined  to  lose  no  time ;  and  the  men  engaged  for  the 
voyage  soon  began  to  cross  the  Sound,  and  to  make  their 
appearance  on  board  the  schooner.  As  for  the  craft  her 
self,  she  had  all  that  was  necessary  for  her  wants  below 
hatches ;  and  the  deacon  began  to  manifest  some  impatience 
for  the  appearance  of  two  or  three  men  of  particular  excel 
lence,  of  whom  Phil  Hazard  was  in  quest,  and  whom  Cap 
tain  Gardiner  had  made  it  a  point  should  be  obtained. 
Little  did  the  worthy  owner  suspect  that  the  Vineyard  peo 
ple  were  tampering  with  these  very  hands,  and  keeping 
them  from  coming  to  terms,  in  order  that  they  might  fit 
out  a  second  Sea  Lion,  which  they  had  now  been  prepar 
ing  for  near  a  month ;  having  purchased  her  at  New  Bed 
ford,  with  a  view  to  profit  by  the  imperfect  information 
that  had  reached  them,  through  the  masters  of  the  brig  and 
sloop.  The  identity  in  the  name  was  accidental,  or,  it 
might  be  better  to  say,  had  been  naturally  enough  sug 
gested  by  the  common  nature  of  the  enterprise ;  but,  once 
existing,  it  had  been  the  means  of  suggesting  to  the  Vine 
yard  company  a  scheme  of  confounding  the  vessels,  out  of 
which  they  hoped  to  reap  some  benefit,  but  which  it  would 
be  premature  now  fully  to  state. 

After  a  delay  of  several  days,  Hazard  sent  across  from 
Stonington  a  man  by  the  name  of  Watson,  who  had  the 
reputation  of  being  a  first-class  sealer.  This  accession 
was  highly  prized ;  and,  in  the  absence  of  his  mates,  both 
of  whom  were  out  looking  for  hands,  Roswell  Gardiner,  to 
whom  command  was  still  novel,  consulted  freely  with  this 


78  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

experienced  and  skilful  mariner.  It  was  fortunate  for  the 
schemes  of  the  deacon  that  he  had  left  his  young  master 
still  in  the  dark,  as  respected  his  two  great  secrets.  Gar 
diner  understood  that  the  schooner  was  to  go  after  seals, 
sea-lions,  sea-elephants,  and  all  animals  of  the  genus phoca; 
but  he  had  been  told  nothing  concerning  the  revelations 
of  Daggett,  or  of  the  real  motives  that  had  induced  him  to 
go  so  far  out  of  his  usual  course,  in  the  pursuit  of  gain. 
We  say  it  was  fortunate  that  the  deacon  had  been  so  wary ; 
for  Watson  had  no  intention  whatever  to  sail  out  of  Oyster 
Pond,  having  been  actually  engaged  as  the  second  officer 
of  the?  rival  Sea  Lion,  which  had  been  purchased  at  New 
Bedford,  and  was  then  in  an  active  state  of  forwardness  in 
its  equipments,  with  a  view  to  compete  with  the  craft  that 
was  still  lying  so  quietly  and  unconsciously  alongside  of 
Deacon  Pratt's  wharf.  In  a  word,  Watson  was  a  spy,  sent 
across  by  the  Vineyard-men,  to  ascertain  all  he  could  of 
the  intentions  of  the  schooner's  owner,  to  worm  himself  into 
Gardiner's  confidence,  and  to  report,  from  time  to  time, 
the  state  of  things  generally,  in  order  that  the  East-enders 
might  not  get  the  start  of  his  real  employers.  It  is  a  com 
mon  boast  of  Americans  that  there  are  no  spies  in  their 
country.  This  may  be  true  in  the  every-day  signification 
of  the  term,  though  it  is  very  untrue  in  all  others.  This  is 
probably  the  most  spying  country  in  Christendom,  if  the 
looking  into  other  people's  concerns  be  meant.  Extensive 
and  recognised  systems  of  espionage  exist  among  mer 
chants;  and  nearly  every  man  connected  with  the  press 
has  enlisted  himself  as  a  sort  of  spy  in  the  interests  of 
politics  —  many,  in  those  of  other  concerns,  also.  The 
reader,  therefore,  is  not  to  run  away  with  impressions 
formed  under  general  assertions  that  will  scarce  bear  in 
vestigation,  and  deny  the  truth  of  pictures  that  are  drawn 
with  daguerreotype  fidelity,  because  they  do  not  happen  to 
reflect  the  cant  of  the  day.  The  man  Watson,  who  had 
partially  engaged  to  go  out  in  the  Sea  Lion,  captain  Ros- 
well  Gardiner,  was  not  only  a  spy,  but  a  spy  sent  covertly 
into  an  enemy's  camp,  with  the  meanest  motives,  and  with 
intentions  as  hostile  as  the  nature  of  the  circumstances 
would  permit. 

Such  was  the  state  of  things  on  Oyster  Pond  for  quite  a 


THE8EALIONS.  79 

week  after  the  nephew  had  been  to  look  after  the  effects 
of  the  deceased  uncle.  The  schooner  was  now  quite  ready 
for  sea,  and  her  master  began  to  talk  of  hauling  off  from 
the  wharf.  It  is  true,  there  was  no  very  apparent  reason 
why  this  step,  preliminary  to  sailing,  should  be  taken  in 
that  port,  where  there  were  so  few  opportunities  for  her 
people's  running  into  excesses;  but  it  sounded  ship-shape, 
and  captain  Gardiner  had  been  heard  to  express  an  inten 
tion  to  that  effect.  The  men  arrived  but  slowly  from  the 
main,  and  something  like  impatience  was  manifested  by 
the  young  commander,  who  had  long  before  got  all  his 
green  hands,  or  youths  from  the  neighbourhood,  on  board, 
and  was  gradually  breaking  them  in  to  the  ways  of  a  vessel. 
Indeed,  the  best  reason  he  could  give  to  himself  for  '  haul 
ing  off/  was  the  practice  it  might  give  to  these  lads  with 
the  oars. 

"  I  don't  know  what  Hazard  and  Green  are  about" — 
called  out  Roswell  Gardiner  to  his  owner,  the  first  being 
on  the  quarter-deck  of  the  Sea  Lion,  and  the  last  on  the 
wharf,  while  Watson  was  busy  in  the  main-rigging ;  "  they  've 
been  long  enough  on  the  main  to  ship  a  dozen  crews  for  a 
craft  of  this  size,  and  we  are  still  short  two  hands,  even 
if  this  man  sign  the  papers,  which  he  has  not  yet  done.. 
By  the  way,  Watson,  it's  time  we  saw  your  hand-writing." 

"I'm  a  poor  scholar,  captain  Gar'ner,"  returned  the 
cunning  mariner,  "  and  it  takes  time  for  me  to  make  out 
even  so  small  a  matter  as  my  name." 

"Ay,  ay;  you  are  a  prudent  fellow,  and  I  like  you  all 
the  better  for  it.  But  you  have  had  leisure,  and  a  plenty 
of  it  too,  to  make  up  your  mind.  You  must  know  the 
schooner  from  her  keel  up  by  this  time,  and  ought  to  be 
able  to  say  now  that  you  are  willing  to  take  luck's  chances 
in  her." 

"Ay,  ay,  sir ;  that 's  all  true  enough,  so  far  as  the  craft 
is  concerned.  If  this  was  a  West  India  v'y'ge,  I  wouldn't 
stand  a  minute  about  signing  the  articles;  nor  should  I 
make  much  question  if  the  craft  was  large  enough  for  a 
common  whalin'  v'y'ge;  but,  sealin'  is  a  different  business, 
and  one  onprofitable  hand  may  make  many  an  onprofitable 
lay." 

"All  this  is  true  enough ;  but  we  do  not  intend  to  take 


80  THESEALIONS. 

any  unprofitable  hands,  or  to  have  any  unprofitable  lays. 
You  know  me—" 

"  Oh !  if  all  was  like  you,  captain  Gar'ner,  I  wouldn't 
stand  even  to  wipe  the  pen.  Your  repitation  was  made  in 
the  southward,  and  no  man  can  dispute  your  skill." 

"  Well,  both  mates  are  old  hands  at  the  business,  and 
we  intend  that  all  the  '  ables'  shall  be  as  good  men  as  you 
are  yourself." 

"  It  needs  good  men,  sir,  to  be  operatin'  among  some  of 
them  sea-elephants  !  Sea-dogs ;  for  sea-dogs  is  my  sayin'. 
They  tell  of  seals  getting  source ;  but  I  say,  it 's  all  in  knowin' 
the  business  —  'There's  young  captain  Gar'ner,'  says  I, 
*  that 's  fittin'  out  a  schooner  for  some  onknown  part  of  the 
world,'  says  I,  '  maybe  for  the  South  Pole,  for-ti-know,  or 
for  some  sich  out-of-the-way  hole ;  now  he  '11  come  back 
full,  or  I  'm  no  judge  o'  the  business,'  says  I." 

"Well,  if  this  is  your  way  of  thinking,  you  have  only  to 
clap  your  name  to  the  articles,  and  take  your  lay." 

"Ay,  ay,  sir ;  when  I  've  seed  my  shipmates.  There 
isn't  the  business  under  the  sun  that  so  much  needs  that 
every  man  should  be  true,  as  the  sea-elephant  trade. 
Smaller  animals  may  be  got  along  with,  with  a  narvous 
crew,  perhaps ;  but  when  it  comes  to  the  raal  old  bulls,  or 
bull-dogs,  as  a  body  might  better  call  'em,  give  me  stout 
hearts,  as  well  as  stout  hands." 

'*  Well,  now,  to  my  notion,  Watson,  it  is  less  dangerous 
to  take  a  sea-elephant  than  to  fasten  to  a  regular  old  bull- 
whale,  that  may  be  has  had  half  a  dozen  irons  in  him  al 
ready." 

"  Yes,  sir,  that's  sometimes  skeary  work,  too;  though  I 
don't  think  so  much  of  a  whale  as  I  do  of  a  sea-elephant, 
or  of  a  sea-lion.  '  Let  me  know  my  shipmates,'  say  I,  «  on 
a  sealin'  expedition.'" 

"Captain  Gar'ner,"  said  the  deacon,  who  necessarily 
overheard  this  discourse,  "you  ought  to  know  at  once 
whether  this  man  is  to  go  in  the  schooner  or  not.  The 
mates  believe  he  is,  and  may  come  across  from  the  main 
without  a  hand  to  take  his  place  should  he  leave  us.  The 
thing  should  be  settled  at  once." 

"  I  'm  willing  to  come  to  tarms  this  minute,"  returned 
Watson,  as  boldly  as  if  he  were  perfectly  sincere ;  "  only 


THESEALIONS.  81 

let  me  understand  what  I  undertake.  If  I  know'd  to  what 
islands  the  schooner  was  bound,  it  might  make  a  difference 
in  my  judgment." 

This  was  a  well-devised  question  of  the  spy's,  though  it 
failed  of  its  effect,  in  consequence  of  the  deacon's  great 
caution  in  not  having  yet  told  his  secret,  even  to  the  mas 
ter  of  his  craft.  Had  Gardiner  known  exactly  where  he 
was  about  to  go,  the  desire  to  secure  a  hand  as  valuable  as 
Watson  might  have  drawn  from  him  some  imprudent  reve 
lation  ;  but  knowing  nothing  himself,  he  was  obliged  to 
make  the  best  answer  he  could. 

"  Going,"  he  said ;  "  why,  we  are  going  after  seals,  to 
be  sure ;  and  shall  look  for  them  where  they  are  most  to 
be  found.  As  experienced  a  hand  as  yourself  ought  to 
know  where  that  is." 

"Ay,  ay,  sir,"  answered  the  fellow,  laughing — "  it's  just 
neither  here  nor  there — that's  all." 

"  Captain  Gar'ner,"  interrupted  the  deacon,  solemnly, 
"  this  is  trifling,  and  we  must  come  to  terms  with  this 
man,  or  write  to  Mr.  Hazard  to  engage  another  in  his 
place.  Come  ashore,  sir;  I  have  business  with  you  up  at 
the  house." 

The  serious  manner  in  which  this  was  uttered  took  both 
the  captain  and  the  man  a  little  by  surprise.  As  for  the 
first,  he  went  below  to  conceal  his  good-looking  throat  be 
neath  a  black  handkerchief,  before  he  followed  the  deacon 
where  it  was  most  probable  he  should  meet  with  Mary. 
While  he  was  thus  occupied,  Watson  came  down  out  of 
the  main-rigging  and  descended  into  the  forecastle.  As 
the  young  captain  was  walking  fast  towards  the  dwelling 
of  Deacon  Pratt,  Watson  came  on  deck  again,  and  hailed 
Baiting  Joe,  who  was  fishing  at  no  great  distance  from  the 
wharf.  In  a  few  minutes  Watson  was  in  Joe's  boat,  bag 
and  all  —  he  had  not  brought  a  chest  on  board  —  and  was 
under  way  for  the  Harbour.  From  the  Harbour  he  sailed 
the  same  evening,  in  a  whale-boat  that  was  kept  in  readi 
ness  for  him,  carrying  the  news  over  to  Holmes's  Hole 
that  the  Sea  Lion,  of  Oyster  Pond,  would  certainly  be 
ready  to  go  out  as  early  as  the  succeeding  week.  Although 
Watson  thus  seemingly  deserted  his  post,  it  was  with  a 
perfect  understanding  with  his  real  employers  He  had 


82  THE    SEA    LIONS 

need  of  a  few  days  to  make  his  own  preparations  before  he 
Jeft  the  41st  degree  of  north  latitude  to  go  as  far  south  as 
a  vessel  could  proceed.  He  did  not,  however,  leave  his 
post  entirely  vacant.  One  of  Deacon  Pratt's  neighbours 
had  undertaken,  for  a  consideration,  to  let  the  progress  of 
events  be  known,  and  tidings  were  sent  by  every  oppor 
tunity,  reporting  the  movements  of  the  schooner,  and  the 
prospects  of'her  getting  to  sea.  These  last  were  not  quite 
as  flattering  as  Roswell  Gardiner  hoped  and  believed,  the 
agents  of  the  Vineyard  company  having  succeeded  in 
getting  away  two  of  Hazard's  best  men ;  and  as  reliable 
sealers  were  not  to  be  picked  up  as  easily  as  pebbles  on  a 
beach,  the  delay  caused  by  this  new  stroke  of  management 
might  even  be  serious.  All  this  time  the  Sea  Lion,  of 
Holmes'  Hole,  was  getting  ahead  with  untiring  industry, 
and  there  was  every  prospect  of  her  being  ready  to  go  out 
as  soon  as  her  competitor.  But,  to  return  to  Oyster  Pond. 

Deacon  Pratt  was  in  his  porch  ere  Roswell  Gardiner 
overtook  him.  There  the  deacon  gave  his  young  friend  to 
understand  he  had  private  business  of  moment,  and  led  the 
way  at  once  into  his  own  apartment,  which  served  the  pur 
poses  of  office,  bed-room  and  closet ;  the  good  man  being 
accustomed  to  put  up  his  petition  to  the  throne  of  Mercy 
there,  as  well  as  transact  all  his  temporal  affairs.  Shutting 
the  door,  and  turning  the  key,  not  a  little  to  Roswell's  sur 
prise,  the  old  man  faced  his  companion  with  a  most  earnest 
and  solemn  look,  telling  him  at  once  that  he  was  now  about 
to  open  his  mind  to  him  in  a  matter  of  the  last  concern. 
The  young  sailor  scarce  knew  what  to  think  of  it  all ;  but 
he  hoped  that  Mary  was,  in  some  way,  connected  with  the 
result. 

"  In  the  first  place,  captain  Gar'ner,"  continued  the 
deacon,  "  I  must  ask  you  to  take  an  oath." 

"An  oath,  deacon!  —  This  is  quite  new  for  the  sealing 
business — as  ceremonious  as  Uncle  Sam's  people." 

"  Yes,  sir,  an  oath;  and  an  oath  that  must  be  most  reli 
giously  kept,  and  on  this  bible.  Without  the  oath,  our 
whole  connection  must  fall  through,  captain  Gar'ner." 

"  Rather  than  that  should  happen,  deacon,  I  will  cheer 
fully  take  two  oaths ;  one  to  clench  the  other." 

"  It  is  well.     I  ask  you,  Roswell  Gar'ner,  to  swear  on 


THE    SEA    LIONS.  83 

this  Holy  Book  that  the  secrets  I  shall  now  reveal  to  you 
shall  not  be  told  to  any  other,  except  in  a  manner  prescribed 
by  myself;  that  in  no  other  man's  employment  will  you 
profit  by  them  and  that  you  will  in  all  things  connected 
with  them  be  true  and  faithful  to  your  engagements  to  me 
and  to  my  interests — so  help  you  God !" 

Roswell  Gardiner  kissed  the  book,  while  he  wondered 
much,  and  was  dying  with  curiosity  to  know  what  was  to 
follow.  This  great  point  secured,  the  deacon  laid  aside  the 
sacred  volume,  opened  a  drawer,  and  produced  the  two  all- 
important  charts,  to  which  tie  had  transferred  the  notes  of 
Daggett. 

"  Captain  Gar'ner,"  resumed  the  deacon,  spreading  the 
chart  of  the  antarctic  sea  on  the  bed,  '*  you  must  have 
known  me  and  my  ways  long  enough  to  feel  some  surprise 
at  finding  me,  at  my  time  of  life,  first  entering  into  the 
shipping  concern." 

"If  I've  felt  any  surprise,  deacon,  it  is  that  a  man  of 
your  taste  and  judgment  should  have  held  aloof  so  long 
from  the  only  employment  that  I  think  fit  for  a  man  of  real 
energy  and  character." 

"Ay,  this  is  well  enough  for  you  to  say,  as  a  seaman 
yourself;  though  you  will  find  it  hard  to  persuade  most  of 
those  who  live  on  shore  into  your  own  ways  of  thinking." 

"  That  is  because  people  ashore  think  and  act  as  they 
have  been  brought  up  to  do.  Now,  just  look  at  that  chart, 
deacon  ;  see  how  much  of  it  is  water,  and  how  little  of  it 
is  land.  Minister  Whittle  told  us,  only  the  last  Sabbath, 
that  nothing  was  created  without  a  design,  and  that  a  wise 
dispensation  of  Divine  Providence  was  to  be  seen  in  all  the 
works  of  nature.  Now,  if  the  land  was  intended  to  take 
the  lead  of  the  water,  would  there  have  been  so  much  more 
of  the  last  than  of  the  first,  deacon  ?  That  was  the  idea 
that  came  into  my  mind  when  I  heard  the  minister's  words ; 
and  had  not  Mary — " 

"  What  of  Mary  ?"  demanded  the  deacon,  perceiving 
that  the  young  man  paused. 

"  Only  I  was  in  hopes  that  what  you  had  to  say,  deacon, 
might  have  some  connection  with  her." 

"  What  I  have  to  say  is  better  worth  hearing  than  fifty 
Marvs.  As  to  my  niece,  Gar'ner,  you  are  welcome  to  her, 
8 


84  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

if  she  will  have  you ;  and  why  she  does  not  is  to  me  unac 
countable.  But,  you  see  that  chart  —  look  at  it  well,  and 
tell  me  if  you  find  anything  new  or  remarkable  about  it." 

"  It  looks  like  old  times,  deacon,  and  here  are  many 
places  that  I  have  visited  and  know.  What  have  we  here? 
Islands  laid  down  in  pencil,  with  the  latitude  and  longitude 
in  figures !  Who  says  there  is  land,  thereaway,  Deacon 
Pratt,  if  I  may  be  so  free  as  to  ask  the  question!" 

"  I  do— and  capital  good  land  it  is,  for  a  sealing  craft  to 
get  alongside  of.  Them  islands,  Gar'ner,  may  make  your 
fortune,  as  well  as  mine.  No  matter  how  I  know  they  are 
there — it  is  enough  that  I  do  know  it,  arid  that  I  wish  you 
to  carry  the  Sea  Lion  to  that  very  spot,  as  straight  as  you 
can  go;  fill  her  up  with  elephant's  oil,  ivory,  and  skins, 
and  bring  her  back  again  as  fast  as  she  can  travel." 

"  Islands  in  that  latitude  and  longitude !"  said  Roswell 
Gardiner,  examining  the  chart  as  closely  as  if  it  were  of 
very  fine  print  indeed  —  "  I  never  heard  of  any  such  land 
before!" 

"  'Tis  there,  notwithstanding;  and  like  all  land  in  dis 
tant  seas  that  men  have  not  often  troubled,  plentifully  gar 
nished  with  what  will  pay  the  mariner  well  for  his  visit." 

"  Of  that  I  have  little  doubt,  should  there  be  actually 
any  land  there.  It  may  be  a  Cape  Fly  Away  that  some 
fellow  has  seen  in  thick  weather.  The  ocean  is  full  of  such 
islands !" 

"  This  is  none  of  them.  It  is  bony  fidy  'arth,  as  I  know 
from  the  man  who  trod  it.  You  must  take  good  care, 
Gar'ner,  and  not  run  the  schooner  on  it"  —  with  a  small 
chuckling  laugh,  such  as  a  man  little  accustomed  to  this 
species  of  indulgence  uses,  when  in  high  good-humour. 
"  I  am  not  rich  enough  to  buy  and  fit  out  Sea  Lions  for 
you  to  cast  'em  away." 

"  That 's  a  high  latitude,  deacon,  to  carry  a  craft  into. 
Cook,  himself,  fell  short  of  that,  somewhat!" 

"Never  mind  Cook  —  he  was  a  king's  navigator  —  my 
man  was  an  American  sealer ;  and  what  he  has  once  seen 
he  knows  where  to  find  again.  There  are  the  islands  — 
three  in  number  •  and  there  you  wil  find  'em,  with  animals 
on  their  shores  as  plenty  as  clam-shells  on  the  south 
beach." 


THE    SEA    LIONS.  85 

11 1  hope  it  may  be  so.  If  land  is  there,  and  you  Ml  risk 
the  schooner,  I  '11  try  to  get  a  look  at  it.  I  shall  want  you 
to  put  it  down  in  black  and  white,  however,  that  I  'm  to  go 
as  high  as  this." 

"  You  shall  have  any  authority  a  man  may  ask.  On  that 
point  there  can  be  no  difficulty  between  me  and  you.  The 
risk  of  the  schooner  must  be  mine  of  course;  but  I  rely  on 
you  to  take  as  good  care  of  her  as  a  man  can.  Go  then, 
direct,  to  that  point,  and  fill  up  the  schooner.  But,  Gar'ner, 
my  business  doesn't  end  with  this !  As  soon  as  the  schooner 
is  full,  you  will  come  to  the  southward,  and  get  her  clear 
of  everything  like  ice  as  fast  as  possible." 

"  That  I  should  be  very  likely  to  do,  deacon,  though  you 
had  said  nothing  on  the  subject." 

"  Yes,  by  all  accounts  them  are  stormy  seas,  and  the 
sooner  a  body  is  shut  of  them  the  better.  And  now,  Gar'ner, 
I  must  swear  you  again.  I  have  another  secret  to  tell  you, 
and  an  oath  must  go  with  each.  Kiss  this  sacred  volume 
once  more,  and  swear  to  me  never  to  reveal  to  another  that 
which  I  am  about  to  reveal  to  you,  unless  it  may  be  in  a 
court  of  law,  and  at  the  command  of  justice,  so  help  you 
God." 

"  What,  a  second  oath,  deacon  ! — You  are  as  bad  as  the 
custom-houses,  which  take  you  on  all  tacks,  and  don't  be 
lieve  you  when  you've  done.  Surely,  I'm  sworn  in  al 
ready." 

"  Kiss  the  book,  and  swear  to  what  I  have  put  to  you," 
said  the  deacon,  sternly,  "  or  never  go  to  sea  in  a  craft  of 
mine.  Never  to  reveal  what  I  shall  now  tell  you,  unless 
compelled  by  justice,  so  help  you  God  !" 

Thus  cornered,  Roswell  Gardiner  hesitated  no  longer, 
but  swore  as  required,  kissing  the  book  gravely  and  reve 
rently.  This  was  the  young  man's  first  command,  and  he 
was  not  going  to  lose  it  on  account  of  so  small  a  matter  as 
swearing  to  keep  his  owners  secrets.  Having  obtained  the 
pledge,  the  deacon  now  produced  the  second  chart,  which 
was  made  to  take  the  place  of  the  other  on  the  bed. 

*'  There  !"  he  exclaimed,  in  a  sort  of  triumph-—"  that  is 
the  real  object  of  your  voyage !" 

"  That  key !  Why,  deacon,  that  is  in  north  latitude  — ° 
— ",  and  you  make  a  crooked  road  of  it  truly,  when  you 


86  THESEAMONS. 

tell  me  to  go  as  far  south  as  — °  — ",  in  order  to  reach 
it." 

"  It  is  well  to  have  two  strings  to  a  body's  bow,  When 
you  hear  what  you  are  to  bring  from  that  key,  you  will 
understand  why  I  send  you  south,  before  you  are  to  come 
here  to  top  off  your  cargo." 

"  It  must  be  with  turtle,  then,"  said  Roswell  Gardiner, 
laughing.  "  Nothing  grows  on  these  keys  but  a  few  stunted 
shrubs,  and  nothing  is  ever  to  be  found  on  them  but  turtle. 
Once  in  a  while  a  fellow  may  pick  up  a  few  turtle,  if  he 
happen  to  hit  the  right  key." 

"  Gar'ner,"  rejoined  the  deacon,  still  more  solemnly — 
"  that  island,  low  and  insignificant  as  it  is,  contains  trea 
sure.  Pirates  made  their  deposits  here  a  long  time  ago, 
and  the  knowledge  of  that  fact  is  now  confined  to  my 
self." 

The  young  man  stared  at  the  deacon  as  if  he  had  some 
doubts  whether  the  old  man  were  in  his  right  mind.  He 
knew  the  besetting  weakness  of  his  character  well,  and  had 
no  difficulty  in  appreciating  the  influence  of  such  a  belief 
as  that  he  had  just  expressed,  on  his  feelings ;  but  it  seemed 
so  utterly  improbable  that  he,  living  on  Oyster  Pond,  should 
learn  a  fact  of  this  nature,  which  was  concealed  from 
others,  that,  at  first,  he  fancied  his  owner  had  been  dream 
ing  of  money  until  its  images  had  made  him  mad.  Then 
he  recollected  the  deceased  mariner,  the  deacon's  many 
conferences  with  him,  the  interest  he  had  always  appeared 
to  take  in  the  man,  and  the  suddenness,  as  well  as  the 
time,  of  the  purchase  of  the  schooner ;  and  he  at  once  ob 
tained  a  clue  to  the  whole  affair. 

"  Daggett  has  told  you  this,  Deacon  Pratt" — said  Gardi 
ner,  in  his  off-hand  way.  "  And  he  is  the  man  who  has 
told  you  of  those  sealing-islarids  too?'' 

"  Admitting  it  to  be  so,  why  not  Daggett  as  well  as  any 
other  man  ?" 

"  Certainly,  if  he  knew  what  he  was  saying  to  be  true— 
but  the  yarn  of  a  sailor  is  not  often  to  be  taken  for  gospel.' 

"  Daggett  was  near  his  end,  and  cannot  be  classed  with 
those  who  talk  idly  in  the  pride  of  their  health  and  strength 
—  men  who  are  ever  ready  to  say  — '  Tush,  God  has  for 
gotten.1  " 


THESEALIONS.  87 

"  Why  was  this  told  to  you,  when  the  man  had  natural 
friends  and  relatives  by  the  dozen  over  on  the  Vineyard  ?" 

"  He  had  been  away  from  the  Vineyard  and  them  rela 
tives  fifty  years ;  a  length  of  time  that  weakens  a  body's 
feelings  considerably.  Take  you  away  from  Mary  only  a 
fourth  part  of  that  time,  and  you  would  forget  whether  her 
eyes  are  blue  or  black,  and  altogether  how  she  looks." 

"  If  I  should,  a  most  miserable  and  contemptible  dog 
should  I  account  myself!  No,  deacon,  twice  fifty  years 
would  not  make  me  iforget  the  eyes  or  the  looks  of  Mary  !" 

"  Ay,  so  all  youngsters  think,  and  feel,  and  talk.  But 
let  Jem  try  the  world,  and  they  '11  soon  find  out  their  own 
foolishness.  But  Daggett  made  me  his  confidant  because 
Providence  put  me  in  his  way,  and  because  he  trusted  to 
being  well  enough  to  go  in  the  schooner,  and  to  turn  the 
expedition  to  some  account  in  his  own  behalf.'7 

"  Had  the  man  the  impudence  to  confess  that  he  had 
been  a  pirate,  and  helped  to  bury  treasure  on  this  key  ?" 

"  That  is  not,  by  any  means,  his  history.  Daggett  was 
never  a  pirate  himself,  but  accident  placed  him  in  the  same 
prison  and  same  room  as  that  in  which  a  real  pirate  was 
confined.  There  the  men  became  friends,  and  the  con 
demned  prisoner,  for  such  he  was  in  the  end,  gave  this 
secret  to  Daggett  as  the  last  service  he  could  do  him." 

"  I  hope,  deacon,  you  do  not  expect  much  in  the  way  of 
profit  from  this  part  of  the  voyage  ?" 

"  I  expect  the  most  from  it,  Gar'ner,  as  you  will  too, 
when  you  come  to  hear  the  whole  story." 

The  deacon  then  went  into  all  the  particulars  of  the  re 
velations  made  by  the  pirate  to  his  fellow-prisoner,  much 
as  they  had  been  given  by  Daggett  to  himself.  The  young 
man  listened  to  this  account  at  first  with  incredulity,  then 
with  interest;  and  finally  with  a  feeling  that  induced  him 
to  believe  that  there  might  be  more  truth  in  the  narrative 
than  he  had  originally  supposed  possible.  This  change 
was  produced  by  the  earnest  manner  of  the  deacon  as 
much  as  by  the  narrative  itself;  for  he  had  become  graphic 
under  the  strong  impulses  of  that  which,  with  him,  was  a 
master  passion.  So  deep  had  been  the  impression  made 
on  the  mind  of  the  old  man  by  Daggett's  account,  and  so 
intense  the  expectations  thereby  awakened,  that  he  omitted 
8* 


88  THESEALIONS. 

nothing,  observed  the  most  minute  accuracy  in  all  his 
details,  and  conveyed  just  as  distinct  impressions  to  his 
listener,  as  had  been  conveyed  to  himself,  when  the  story 
was  first  told  to  him. 

"This  is  a  most  extr'or'nary  account,  take  it  on  what 
ever  tack  you  will !"  exclaimed  Roswell  Gardiner,  as  soon 
as  a  pause  in  the  deacon's  story  enabled  him  to  put  in  an 
other  word.  "  The  most  extr'or'nary  tale  I  ever  listened 
to!  How  came  so  much  gold  and  silver  to  be  abandoned 
for  so  long  a  time  ?" 

"  Them  three  officers  hid  it  there,  fearing  to  trust  their 
own  crew  with  it  in  their  vessel.  Their  pretence  was  to 
stop  for  turtle,  just  as  you  must  do:  whilst  the  hands  were 
turtling,  the  captain  and  his  mates  walked  about  the  key, 
and  took  occasion  to  make  their  deposits  in  that  hole  on 
the  coral  rock,  as  you  have  heard  me  say.  Oh !  it 's  all  too 
natural  not  to  be  true !" 

Roswell  Gardiner  saw  that  the  old  man's  hopes  were  too 
keenly  excited  to  be  easily  cooled,  and  that  his  latent  co- 
vetousness  was  thoroughly  awakened.  Of  all  the  passion? 
to  which  poor  human  nature  is  the  slave,  the  love  of  gold 
is  that  which  endures  the  longest,  and  is  often  literally 
carried  with  us  to  the  verge  of  the  grave.  Indeed,  in  minds 
so  constituted  originally  as  to  submit  to  an  undue  love  of 
money,  the  passion  appears  to  increase,  as  others  more  de 
pendent  on  youth,  and  strength,  and  enterprise,  and  ambi 
tion,  gradually  become  of  diminished  force,  slowly  but 
surely  usurping  the  entire  sway  over  a  being  that  was  once 
subject  to  many  masters.  Thus  had  it  been  with  the  dea 
con.  Nearly  all  his  passions  now  centred  in  this  one.  He 
no  longer  cared  for  preferment  in  politics,  though  once  it 
had  been  the  source  of  a  strong  desire  to  represent  Suffolk 
at  Albany;  even  the  meeting,  and  its  honours,  was  loosen 
ing  its  hold  on  his  mind ;  while  his  fellow-men,  his  kindred 
included,  were  regarded  by  him  as  little  more  than  so  many 
competitors,  or  tools. 

"A  lie  may  be  made  to  seem  very  natural,"  answered 
Roswell  Gardiner,  "  if  it  has  been  put  together  by  one  who 
understands  knotting  and  splicing  in  such  matters.  Did 
this  Daggett  name  the  amount  of  the  sum  that  he  supposed 
she  pirates  may  have  left  on  that  key?" 


THE    SEA    LIONS.  89 

"  He  did,"  returned  the  deacon,  the  whole  of  his  narrow 
and  craving  soul  seeming  to  gleam  in  his  two  sunken  eyes 
as  he  answered.  "According  to  the  account  of  the  pirate, 
there  could  not  have  been  much  less  than  thirty  thousand 
dollars,  and  nearly  all  of  it  in  good  doubloons  of  the  coin 
of  the  kings — doubloons  that  will  weigh  their  full  sixteens 
to  the  pound — ay,  and  to  spare !" 

"  The  Sea  Lion's  cargo,  well  chosen  and  well  stowed, 
would  double  that,  deacon,  if  the  right  animals  can  only  be 
found." 

"  May  be  so  —  but,  just  think,  Gar'ner —  this  will  be  in 
good  bright  coined  gold  !" 

"  But  what  right  can  we  have  to  that  gold,  even  admitting 
that  it  is  there,  and  can  be  found?" 

"  Right !"  exclaimed  the  deacon,  staring.  "  Does  not 
that  which  Divine  Providence  gives  man  become  his  own  ?" 

"  By  the  same  rule  it  might  be  said  Divine  Providence 
gave  it  to  the  pirates.  There  must  be  lawful  owners  to  all 
this  money,  if  one  could  only  find  them." 

"Ay,  if  one  could  only  find  them.  Harkee,  Gar'ner ; 
have  you  spent  a  shilling  or  a  quarter  lately?" 

"A  good  many  of  both,  deacon,"  answered  the  young 
man,  again  betraying  the  lightness  of  his  heart  with  a 
laugh.  "  I  wish  I  had  more  of  your  saving  temper,  and  I 
might  get  rich.  Yes,  I  spent  a  quarter  only  two  hours 
since,  in  buying  fish  for  the  cabin,  of  old  Baiting  Joe." 

"  Well,  tell  me  the  impression  of  that  quarter.  Had  it  a 
head,  or  only  pillars?  What  was  its  date,  and  in  whose 
reign  was  it  struck  ?  Maybe  it  was  from  the  mint  at  Phi 
ladelphia —  if  so,  had  it  the  old  eagle  or  the  new?  In  a 
word,  could  you  swear  to  that  quarter,  Gar'ner,  or  to  any 
quarter  you  ever  spent  in  your  life?" 

"  Perhaps  not,  deacon.  A  fellow  doesn't  sit  down  to 
take  likenesses,  when  he  gets  a  little  silver  or  gold.' 

"  Nor  is  it  very  probable  that  any  one  could  say  -'  that 
is  my  doubloon.'  " 

"  Still  there  must  be  a  lawful  owner  to  each  piece  of 
that  money,  if  any  such  money  be  there,"  returned  Roswell 
Gardiner,  a  little  positively.  "  Have  you  ever  talked  with 
Mary,  deacon,  on  this  subject  ?" 

"  I  talk  of  such  a  matter  with  a  woman !     Do  you  think 


90  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

I'm  mad,  Gar'ner?  If  I  wanted  to  have  the  secret  run 
through  old  Suffolk,  as  fire  runs  over  the  salt  meadows  iit 
the  spring,  I  might  think  of  such  a  thing :  but  not  without. 
I  have  talked  with  no  one  but  the  master  of  the  craft  that  I 
am  about  to  send  out  in  search  of  this  gold,  as  well  as  in 
search  of  the  sealing-islands  I  have  shown  you.  Had  there 
been  but  one  object  in  view,  I  might  not  have  ventured  so 
much ;  but  with  two  before  my  eyes,  it  would  seem  like 
flying  in  the  face  of  Divine  Providence  to  neglect  so  great 
an  opportunity  !" 

Roswell  Gardiner  saw  that  arguments  would  avail  no 
thing  against  a  cupidity  so  keenly  aroused.  He  abstained, 
therefore,  from  urging  any  more  of  the  objections  that 
suggested  themselves  to  his  mind,  but  heard  all  that  the 
deacon  had  to  tell  him,  taking  full  notes  of  what  he  heard 
It  would  seem  that  Daggett  had  been  sufficiently  clear  in 
his  directions  for  finding  the  hidden  treasure,  provided 
always  that  his  confidant  the  pirate  had  been  as  clear  with 
him,  and  had  not  been  indulging  in  a  mystification.  The 
probability  of  the  last  had  early  suggested  itself  to  one  of 
Deacon  Pratt's  cautious  temperament ;  but  Daggett  had 
succeeded  in  removing  the  impression  by  his  forcible  state 
ments  of  his  friend's  sincerity.  There  was  as  little  doubt 
of  the  sincerity  of  the  belief  of  the  Martha's  Vineyard  ma 
riner,  as  there  was  of  that  of  the  deacon  himself. 

The  day  that  succeeded  this  conference,  the  Sea  Lion 
hauled  off  from  the  wharf,  and  all  communications  with  her 
were  now  made  only  by  means  of  boats.'  The  sudden  dis 
appearance  of  Watson  may  have  contributed  to  this  change, 
men  being  more  under  control  with  a  craft  at  her  moorings 
than  when  fast  to  a  wharf.  Three  days  later  the  schooner 
Hfted  her  anchor,  and  with  a  light  air  made  sail.  She 
passed  through  the  narrow  but  deep  channel  which  sepa 
rates  Shelter  Island  from  Oyster  Pond,  quitting  the  waters 
of  Peconic  altogether.  There  was  not  an  air  of  departure 
about  her,  notwithstanding.  The  deacon  was  not  much 
concerned ;  and  some  of  Roswell  Gardiner's  clothes  were 
still  at  his  washerwoman's,  circumstances  that  were  fully 
explained,  when  the  schooner  was  seen  to  anchor  in  Gar 
diner's  Bay,  which  is  an  outer  roadstead  to  all  the  ports  and 
havens  of  that  region. 


THESEALIONS.  91 


CHAPTER  VII. 

"  Walk  in  the  light!  so  shall  thou  know 

That  fellowship  of  love, 
His  spirit  only  can  bestow 

Who  reigns  in  light  above. 
Walk  in  the  l.ght!  and  sin,  abhorr'd, 

Shall  ne'er  defile  again  5 
The  blood  of  Jesus  Christ,  the  Lord, 
Shall  cleanse  from  every  stain." 

BERXARD  BARTOX. 

ABOUT  an  hour  after  the  Sea  Lion,  of  Oyster  Pond,  had 
let  go  her  anchor  in  Gardiner's  Bay,  a  coasting  sloop  ap 
proached  her,  coming  from  the  westward.  There  are  two 
passages  by  which  vessels  enter  or  quit  Long  Island  Sound, 
at  its  eastern  termination.  The  main  channel  is  between 
Plum  and  Fisher's  Islands,  and,  from  the  rapidity  of  its 
currents,  is  known  by  the  name  of  the  Race.  The  other 
passage  is  much  less  frequented,  being  out  of  the  direct 
line  of  sailing  for  craft  that  keep  mid-sound.  It  lies  to  the 
southward  of  the  Race,  between  Plum  Island  and  Oyster 
Pond  Point,  and  is  called  by  the  Anglo-Saxon  appellation 
of  Plum  Gut.  The  coaster  just  mentioned  had  come  through 
this  latter  passage;  and  it  was  the  impression  of  those  who 
saw  her  from  the  schooner,  that  she  was  bound  up  into 
Peconic,  or  the  waters  of  Sag  Harbour.  Instead  of  luffing 
up  into  either  of  the  channels  that  would  have  carried  her 
into  these  places,  however,  she  kept  off,  crossing  Gardiner's 
Bay,  until  she  got  within  hail  of  the  schooner.  The  wind 
being  quite  light,  there  was  time  for  the  following  short 
dialogue  to  take  place  between  the  skipper  of  this  coaster 
and  Roswell  Gardiner,  before  the  sloop  had  passed  beyond 
the  reach  of  the  voice. 

"Is  that  the  Sea  Lion,  of  Oyster  Pond?"  demanded  the 
skipper,  boldly. 

"Ay,  ay,"  answered  Roswoll  Gardiner,  in  the  sententious 
manner  of  a  seaman. 


92  THESEALIONS. 

"  Is  there  one  Watson,  of  Martha's  Vineyard,  shipped  in 
that  craft?" 

"  He  was  aboard  here  for  a  week,  but  left  us  suddenly. 
As  he  did  not  sign  articles,  I  cannot  say  that  he  run." 

"  He  changed  his  mind,  then,"  returned  the  other,  as 
one  expresses  a  slight  degree  of  surprise  at  hearing  tha* 
which  was  new  to  him.  "  Watson  is  apt  to  whiffle  about, 
though  a  prime  fellow,  if  you  can  once  fasten  to  him,  and 
get  him  into  blue  water.  Does  your  schooner  go  out  to 
morrow,  Captain  Gar'ner?" 

"Not  till  next  day,  I  think,"  said  Roswell  Gardiner, 
with  the  frankness  of  his  nature,  utterly  free  from  the 
slightest  suspicion  that  he  was  communicating  with  one  in 
the  interests  of  rivals.  "  My  mates  have  not  yet  joined  me, 
and  I  am  short  of  my  complement  by  two  good  hands.  Had 
that  fellow  Watson  stuck  by  me,  I  would  have  given  him  a 
look  at  water  that  no  lead  ever  sounded." 

"Ay,  ay;  he's  a  whiffler,  but  a  good  man  on  a  sea-ele 
phant.  Then  you  think  you'll  sail  day  a'ter  to-morrow?" 

"  If  my  mates  come  over  from  the  main.  They  wrote 
me  yesterday  that  they  had  got  the  hands,  and  were  then 
on  the  look-out  for  something  to  get  across  in.  I've  come 
out  here  to  be  ready  for  them,  and  to  pick  'em  up,  that 
they  needn't  go  all  the  way  up  to  the  Harbour." 

"  That's  a  good  traverse,  and  will  save  a  long  pull.  Per 
haps  they  are  in  that  boat." 

At  this  allusion  to  a  boat,  Roswell  Gardiner  sprang  into 
his  main  rigging,  and  saw,  sure  enough,  that  a  boat  was 
pulling  directly  towards  the  schooner,  coming  from  the 
main,  and  distant  only  a  short  half  mile.  A  glass  was 
handed  to  him,  and  he  was  soon  heard  announcing  cheer 
fully  to  his  men,  that  "  Mr.  Hazard  and  the  second  officer 
were  in  the  boat,  with  two  seamen,"  and  that  he  supposed 
they  should  now  have  their  complement.  All  this  was 
overheard  by  the  skipper  of  the  sloop,  \vli- >  caught  each 
syllable  with  the  most  eager  attention.. 

"  You  '11  soon  be  travelling  south,  I  'm  thinking,  Captain 
Gar'ner?"  called  out  this  worthy,  again,  in  a  sort  of  felici 
tating  way  —  "  Them  's  your  chaps,  and  they  '11  set  you  up." 

"  I  hope  so,  with  all  my  heart,  for  there  is  nothing  more 
tiresome  than  waiting  when  one  is  all  ready  to  trip.  My 


THESEALIONS.  93 

owner  is  getting  to  be  impatient  too,  and  wants  to  see  some 
skins  in  return  for  his  dollars." 

"Ay,  ay,  them 's  your  chaps,  and  you  '11  be  off  the  day 
a'ter  to-morrow,  at  the  latest.  Well,  a  good  time  to  you, 
Captain  Gar'ner,  and  a  plenty  of  skinning.  It 's  a  long 
road  to  travel,  especially  when  a  craft  has  to  go  as  far  south 
as  your's  is  bound  !" 

"  How  do  you  know,  friend,  whither  I  am  bound  ?  You 
have  not  asked  me  for  my  sealing  ground,  nor  is  it  usual, 
in  our  business,  to  be  hawking  it  up  and  down  the  coun 
try." 

"All  that  is  true  enough,  but  I  've  a  notion,  notwith 
standing.  Now,  as  you  '11  be  off  so  soon,  and  as  I  shall  not 
see  you  again,  for  some  time  at  least,  I  will  give  you  a 
piece  of  advice.  If  you  fall  in  with  a  consort,  don't  fall  out 
with  her,  and  make  a  distant  v'y'ge  a  cruise  for  an  enemy, 
but  come  to  tarms,  and  work  in  company ;  lay  for  lay ;  and 
make  fair  weather  of  what  can't  be  helped." 

The  men  on  board  the  sloop  laughed  at  this  speech, 
while  those  on  board  the  schooner  wondered.  To  Roswell 
Gardiner  and  his  people  the  allusions  were  an  enigma,  and 
the  former  muttered  something  about  the  stranger's  being 
a  dunce,  as  he  descended  from  the  rigging,  and  gave  some 
orders  to  prepare  to  receive  the  boat. 

"  The  chap  belongs  to  the  Hole,"  rejoined  the  master 
of  the  schooner,  "  and  all  them  Vineyard  fellows  fancy 
themselves  better  blue-jackets  than  the  rest  of  mankind : 
I  suppose  it  must  be  because  their  island  lies  further  out 
to  sea  than  anything  we  have  here  inside  of  Montauk." 

Thus  ended  the  communications  with  the  stranger.  The 
sloop  gHded  away  before  a  light  south  wind,  and,  favoured 
by  an  ebb  tide,  soon  rounded  the  spit  of  sand  that  shelters 
the  anchorage;  and,  hauling  up  to  the  eastward,  she  went 
on  her  way  towards  Holmes'  Hole.  The  skipper  was  a 
relative  of  half  of  those  who  were  interested  in  fitting  out 
the  rival  Sea  Lion,  and  had  volunteered  to  obtain  the  very 
information  he  took  with  him,  knowing  how  acceptable  it 
would  be  to  those  at  home.  Sooth  to  say,  a  deep  but  wary 
excitement  prevailed  on  the  Vineyard,  touching  not  only 
the  sealing-islands,  but  also  in  respect  to  the  buried  trea 
sure.  The  information  actually  possessed  by  the  relations 


94  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

of  the  deceased  mariner  was  neither  very  full  nor  very 
clear.  It  consisted  principally  of  sayings  of  Daggett,  utter 
ed  during  his  homeward-bound  passage,  and  transmitted 
by  the  master  of  the  brig  to  him  of  the  sloop  in  the  course 
of  conferences  that  wore  away  a  long  summer's  afternoon, 
as  the  two  vessels  lay  becalmed  within  a  hundred  fathoms 
of  each  other.  These  sayings,  however,  had  been  frequent 
and  intelligible.  All  men  like  to  deal  in  that  which  makes 
them  of  importance ;  and  the  possession  of  his  secrets  had 
just  the  effect  on  Daggett's  mind  that  was  necessary  to 
render  him  boastful.  Under  such  impulses  his  tongue  had 
not  been  very  guarded ;  and  facts  leaked  out  which,  when 
transmitted  to  his  native  island,  through  the  medium  of 
half  a  dozen  tongues  and  as  many  fancies,  amounted  to 
statements  sufficient  to  fire  the  imaginations  of  a  people 
much  duller  than  those  of  Martha's  Vineyard.  Accustomed 
to  converse  and  think  of  such  expeditions,  it  is  not  sur 
prising  that  a  few  of  the  most  enterprising  of  those  who 
first  heard  the  reports  should  unite  and  plan  the  adventure 
they  now  actually  had  in  hand.  When  the  intelligence  of 
what  was  going  on  on  Oyster  Pond  reached  them,  every 
thing  like  hesitation  or  doubt  disappeared ;  and  from  the 
moment  of  the  nephew's  return  in  quest  of  his  uncle's 
assets,  the  equipment  of  the  "  Humses'  Hull"  craft  had 
been  pressed  in  a  way  that  would  have  done  credit  to  that 
of  a  government  cruiser.  Even  Henry  Eckford,  so  well 
known  for  having  undertaken  to  cut  the  trees  and  put 
upon  the  waters  of  Ontario  two  double-bank  frigates,  if 
frigates  they  couid  be  termed,  each  of  which  was  to  mount 
its  hundred  guns,  in  the  short  space  of  .sixty  days,  scarce 
manifested  greater  energy  in  carrying  out  his  contract, 
than  did  these  rustic  islanders  in  preparing  their  craft  to 
compete  with  that  which  they  were  now  certain  was  about 
to  sail  from  the  place  where  their  kinsman  had  breathed 
his  last. 

These  keen  and  spirited  .islanders,  however,  did  not 
work  quite  as  much  in  the  dark  as  our  accounts,  unex 
plained,  might  give  the  relder  reason  to  suppose.  It  will 
be  remembered  that  there  was  a  till  to  the  chest  which 
had  not  been  examined  by  the  deacon.  This  till  contained 
an  old  mutilated  journal,  not  of  the  last,  but  of  one  or  two 


THE     SEA     LIONS.  95 

of  the  earlier  voyages  of  the  deceased ;  though  it  hau  de 
tached  entries  that  evidently  referred  to  different  and  dis 
tant  periods  of  time.  By  dint  of  study,  and  by  putting 
together  sundry  entries  that  at  first  sight  might  not  be  sup 
posed  to  have  any  connection  with  each  other,  the  present 
possessor  of  that  chest  had  obtained  what  he  deemed  to  be 
very  sufficient  clues  to  his  uncle's  two  great  secrets.  There 
were  also  in  the  chest  several  loose  pieces  of  paper,  on 
which  there  were  rude  attempts  to  make  charts  of  all  the 
islands  and  keys  in  question,  giving  their  relative  positions 
as  it  respected  their  immediate  neighbours,  but  in  no  in 
stance  giving  the  latitudes  and  longitudes.  In  addition  to 
these  significant  proofs  that  the  reports  brought  through 
the  two  masters  were  not  without  a  foundation,  there  was 
an  unfinished  letter,  written  by  the  deceased,  and  addressed 
as  a  sort  of  legacy,  "  to  any.,  or  all  of  Martha's  Vineyard, 
of  the  name  of  Daggett."  This  address  was  sufficiently 
wide,  including,  probably,  some  hundreds  of  persons;  a 
clan  in  fact ;  but  it  was  also  sufficiently  significant.  The 
individual  into  whose  hands  it  first  fell,  being  of  the  name, 
read  it  first,  as  a  matter  of  course,  when  he  carefully  folded 
it  up,  and  placed  it  in  a  pocket-book  which  he  was  much 
in  the  habit  of  carrying  in  his  own  pocket.  On  what  prin 
ciple  this  letter,  unfinished  and  without  a  signature,  with 
nothing  indeed  but  its  general  and  comprehensive  address 
to  point  out  its  origin  as  well  as  its  destination,  was  thus 
appropriated  to  the  purposes  of  a  single  individual,  we 
shall  not  stop  to  inquire.  Such  was  the  fact,  however,  and 
none  connected  with  the  equipment  of  the  Sea  Lion,  of 
Holmes'  Hole,  knew  anything  of  the  existence  of  that 
document,  its  present  possessor  excepted.  He  looked  it 
over  occasionally,  and  deemed  the  information  it  conveyed 
of  no  trifling  import,  under  all  the  circumstances  of  the 
ease. 

Both  the  enterprises  of  which  we  have  given  an  opening 
account  were  perfectly  characteristic  of  the  state  of  society 
in  which  they  were  brought  into  existence.  Deacon  Pratt, 
if  he  had  any  regular  calling,  was  properly  a  husbandman, 
though  the  love  of  money  had  induced  him  to  invest  his 
•Msh  in  nearly  every  concern  around  him,  which  promised 
remunerating  returns.  The  principal  owners  of  the  Sea 
9 


96  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

Lion,  of  Holmes'  Hole,  were  husbandmen  also;  folk  who 
literally  tilled  the  earth,  cradled  their  own  oats  and  rye, 
and  mowed  their  own  meadows.  Notwithstanding,  neither 
of  these  men,  those  of  the  Vineyard  any  more  than  he  of 
Oyster  Pond,  had  hesitated  about  investing  of  his  means 
in  a  maritime  expedition,  just  as  if  they  were  all  regular 
ship-owners  of  the  largest  port  in  the  Union.  With  such 
men,  it  is  only  necessary  to  exhibit  an  account  with  a  fair 
prospect  of  large  profits,  and  they  are  ever  ready  to  enter 
into  the  adventure,  heart,  hand,  and  pocket.  Last  season, 
it  may  have  been  to  look  for  whales  on  the  coast  of  Japan; 
the  season  before  that,  to  search  for  islands  frequented  by 
the  seals;  this  season,  possibly,  to  carry  a  party  out  to 
hunt  for  camelopards,  set  nets  for  young  lions,  and  beat 
up  the  quarters  of  the  rhinoceros  on  the  plains  of  Africa; 
while  the  next,  they  may  be  transporting  ice  from  Long 
Pond  to  Calcutta  and  Kingston  —  not  to  say  to  London 
itself.  Of  such  materials  are  those  descendants  of  the 
Puritans  composed  •  a  mixture  of  good  and  evil ;  of  the 
religion  which  clings  to  the  past,  in  recollection  rather 
than  in  feeling,  mingled  with  a  worldly-mindedness  that 
amounts  nearly  to  rapacity ;  all  cloaked  and  rendered  de 
cent  by  a  conventional  respect  for  duties,  and  respectable 
and  useful,  by  frugality,  enterprise,  and  untiring  activity. 

Roswell  Gardiner  had  not  mistaken  the  persons  of  those 
in  the  boat.  They  proved  to  be  Phil  Hazard,  his  first 
officer;  Tim  Green,  the  second  mate;  and  the  two  sealers 
whom  it  had  cost  so  much  time  and  ingenuity  to  obtain. 
Although  neither  of  the  mates  even  suspected  the  truth, 
no  sooner  had  they  engaged  the  right  sort  of  man  than  he 
was  tampered  with  by  the  agents  of  the  Martha's  Vineyard 
concern,  and  spirited  away  by  means  of  more  tempting 
proposals,  before  he  had  got  quite  so  far  as  to  sign  the 
articles.  One  of  the  motives  for  sending  Watson  across  to 
Oyster  Pond  had  been  to  induce  Captain  Gardiner  to  be 
lieve  he  had  engaged  so  skilful  a  hand,  which  would  effec 
tually  prevent  his  attempting  to  procure  another,  until,  at 
the  last  moment,  he  might  find  himself  unable  to  put  to 
sea  for  the  want  of  a  complement.  A  whaling  or  a  sealing 
voyage  requires  that  the  vessel  should  take  out  with  her  the 
particular  hands  necessary  to  her  specific  object,  though, 


THESEALIONS.  97 

of  late  years,  the  seamen  have  got  so  much  in  the  habit 
of  4  running,'  especially  in  the  Pacific,  that  it  is  only  the 
craft  that  strictly  belong  to  what  may  be  termed  the  whaling 
communities,  that  bring  back  with  them  the  people  they 
carry  out,  and  not  always  them. 

But  here  had  Roswell  Gardiner  his  complement  full, 
and  nearly  everything  ready  to  sea.  He  had  only  to  go  up 
to  the  Harbour  and  obtain  his  clearance,  have  a  short  in 
terview  with  his  owner,  a  longer  with  Mary,  and  be  off  for 
the  antarctic  circle,  if  indeed  the  ice  would  allow  him  to 
get  as  far  south.  There  were  now  sixteen  souls  on  board 
the  Sea  Lion,  a  very  sufficient  number  for  the  voyage  on 
which  she  was  about  to  sail.  The  disposition  or  rating  of 
the  crew  was  as  follows,  viz. 

1.  Roswell  Gardiner,  master.  9.  Joshua  Short,  seaman. 

2.  Philip  Hazard,  chief  mate.  10.  Stephen  Stimson,         do. 

3.  Timothy  Green,  second  do.  11.  Bartlett  Davidson,       do 

4.  David  Weeks,  carpenter.  12.  Peter  Mount,  landsman. 

5.  Nathan  Thompson,  seaman.  13.  Arcularius  Mott,          do. 

6.  Sylvester  Havens,         do.  14.  Robert  Smith,  do 

7.  Marcus  Todd,  do.  15.  Cato  Livingston,  cook. 

8.  Hiram  Flint,  do.  16.  Primus  Floyd,  boy. 

This  was  considered  a  good  crew,  on  the  whole.  Every 
man  was  a  native  American,  and  most  of  them  belonged  to 
old  Suffolk.  Thompson,  and  Flint,  and  Short,  arid  Stim 
son,  four  capital  fellows  in  their  way,  came  from  the  main ; 
the  last,  it  was  said,  from  as  far  east  as  Kennebunk.  No 
matter;  they  were  all  reasonably  young,  hale,  active  fel 
lows,  with  a  promise  of  excellent  service  about  every  man 
of  them.  Livingston  and  Floyd  were  coloured  persons, 
who  bore  the  names  of  the  two  respectable  families  in 
which  they  or  their  progenitors  had  formerly  been  slaves. 
Weeks  was  accustomed  to  the  sea,  and  might  have  been 
rated  indifferently  as  a  carpenter  or  as  a  mariner.  Mount 
and  Mott,  though  shipped  as  landsmen,  were  a  good  deal 
accustomed  to  the  water  also,  having  passed  each  two  sea 
sons  in  coasters,  though  neither  had  ever  yet  been  really 
outside,  or  seen  blue  water. 

It  would  not  have  been  easy  to  give  to  the  Sea  Lion 
a  more  efficient  crew;  yet  there  was  scarce  a  real  sea 
man  belonging  to  her — a  man  who  could  have  been  made 


98  TE[E     SEA     LIONS. 

a  captain  of  the  forecastle  on  board  a  frigate  or  a  ship 
of  the  line.  Even  Gardiner,  the  best  man  in  his  little 
craft  in  nearly  every  respect,  was  deficient  in  many  attain 
ments  that  mark  the  thorough  sea-dog.  He  would  have 
been  remarkable  anywhere  for  personal  activity,  for  cou 
rage,  readiness,  hardihood,  and  all  those  qualities  which 
render  a  man  useful  in  the  business  to  which  he  properly 
belonged ;  but  he  could  hardly  be  termed  a  skilful  leads 
man,  knew  little  of  the  finesse  of  his  calling,  and  was 
wanting  in  that  in-and-in  breeding  which  converts  habit 
into  an  instinct,  and  causes  the  thorough  seaman  to  do  the 
right  thing,  blow  high  or  blow  low,  in  the  right  way,  and 
at  the  right  moment.  In  all  these  respects,  however,  he 
was  much  the  best  man  on  board ;  and  he  was  so  superior 
to  the  rest  as  fully  to  command  all  their  respect.  Stimson 
was  probably  the  next  best  seaman,  after  the  master. 

The  day  succeeding  that  on  which  the  Sea  Lion  re 
ceived  the  remainder  of  her  people,  Roswell  Gardiner  went 
up  to  the  Harbour,  where  he  met  Deacon  Pratt,  by  ap 
pointment.  The  object  was  to  clear  the  schooner  out, 
which  could  be  done  only  at  that  place.  Mary  accompa 
nied  her  uncle,  to  transact  some  of  her  own  little  domestic 
business ;  and  it  was  then  arranged  between  the  parties, 
that  the  deacon  should  make  his  last  visit  to  his  vessel  in 
the  return-boat  of  her  master,  while  Roswell  Gardiner 
should  take  Mary  back  to  Oyster  Pond,  in  the  whale-boat 
that  had  brought  her  and  her  uncle  over.  As  Baiting  Joe, 
as  usual,  had  acted  as  ferryman,  it  was  necessary  to  get 
rid  of  him,  the  young  sailor  desiring  to  be  alone  with  Mary. 
This  was  easily  enough  effected,  by  a  present  of  a  quarter 
of  a  dollar.  The  boat  having  two  lugg  sails,  and  the  wind 
being  light  and  steady,  at  south-west,  there  was  nothing  to 
conflict  with  Roswell  Gardiner's  wishes. 

The  young  sailor  left  the  wharf  at  Sag  Harbour  about 
ten  minutes  after  the  deacon  had  preceded  him,  on  his  way 
to  the  schooner.  As  the  wind  was  so  light  and  so  fair,  he 
soon  had  his  sheets  in,  and  the  boat  gliding  along  at  an 
easy  rate,  which  permitted  him  to  bestow  nearly  all  his  at 
tention  on  his  charming  companion.  Roswell  Gardiner 
had  sought  this  occasion,  that  he  might  once  more  open 
his  heart  to  Mary,  and  urge  his  suit  for  the  last  time,  pre- 


THESEALIONS.  99 

viously  to  so  long  an  absence.  This  he  did  in  a  manly, 
frank  way,  that  was  far  from  being  unpleasant  to  his  gentle 
listener,  whose  inclinations,  for  a  few  minutes,  blinded  her 
to  the  resolutions  already  made  on  principle.  So  urgent 
was  her  suitor,  indeed,  that  she  should  solemnly  plight  her 
faith  to  him,  ere  he  sailed,  that  a  soft  illusion  came  over 
the  mind  of  one  as  affectionate  as  Mary,  and  she  was  half" 
inclined  to  believe  her  previous  determination  was  unjusti 
fiable  and  obdurate.  But  the  head  of  one  of  her  high  prin 
ciples,  and  clear  views  of  duty,  could  not  long  be  deceived 
by  her  heart,  and  she  regained  the  self-command  which 
had  hitherto  sustained  her  in  all  her  former  trials,  in  con 
nection  with  this  subject. 

"  Perhaps  it  would  have  been  better,  Roswell,"  she  said, 
"  had  I  taken  leave  of  you  at  the  Harbour,  and  not  incurred 
the  risk  of  the  pain  that  I  foresee  I  shall  both  give  and 
bear,  in  our  present  discourse.  I  have  concealed  nothing 
from  you ;  possibly  I  have  been  more  sincere  than  prudence 
would  sanction.  You  know  the  only  obstacle  there  is  to 
our  union ;  but  that  appears  to  increase  in  strength,  the 
more  I  ask  you  to  reflect  on  it — to  try  to  remove  it." 

"  What  would  you  have  me  do,  Mary  !  Surely,  not  to 
play  the  hypocrite,  and  profess  to  believe  that  which  I  cer 
tainly  do  not,  and  which,  after  all  my  inquiries,  I  cannot 
believe." 

"  I  am  sorry  it  is  so,  on  every  account,"  returned  Mary, 
in  a  low  and  saddened  tone.  "  Sorry,  that  one  of  so  frank, 
ingenuous  a  mind,  should  find  it  impossible  to  accept  the 
creed  of  his  fathers,  and  sorry  that  it  must  leave  so  impas 
sable  a  chasm  between  us,  for  ever." 

"No,  Mary;  that  can  never  be!  Nothing  but  death 
can  separate  us  for  so  long  a  time !  While  we  meet,  we 
shall  at  least  be  friends ;  and  friends  love  to  meet  and  to 
see  each  other  often." 

"  It  may  seem  unkind,  at  a  moment  like  this,  Roswell, 
but  it  is  in  truth  the  very  reverse,  if  I  say  we  ought  not  to 
meet  each  other  here,  if  we  are  bent  on  following  our  own 
separate  ways  towards  a  future  world.  My  God  is  not  your 
God  ;  and  what  can  there  be  of  peace  in  a  family,  when  its 
two  heads  worship  different  deities  1  I  am  afraid  that  you 
do  not  think  sufficiently  of  the  nature  of  these  things." 
9* 


100  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

"I  did  not  believe  you  to  be  so  illiberal,  Mary!  Had 
the  deacon  said  as  much,  I  might  not  have  been  surprised ; 
but,  for  one  like  you  to  tell  me  that  my  God  is  not  your 
God,  is  narrow,  indeed !" 

"  Is  it  not  so,  Roswell?  And,  if  so,  why  should  we  at 
tempt  to  gloss  over  the  truth  by  deceptive  words?  I  am  a 
believer  in  the  Redeemer,  as  the  Son  of  God ;  as  one  of 
the  Holy  Trinity ;  while  you  believe  in  him  only  as  a  man 
— a  righteous  and  just,  a  sinless  man,  if  you  will,  but  as  a 
man  only.  Now,  is  not  the  difference  in  these  creeds  im 
mense?  Is  it  not,  in  truth,  just  the  difference  between 
God  and  man?  I  worship  my  Redeemer;  regard  him  as 
the  equal  of  the  Father — as  a  part  of  that  Divine  Being ; 
while  you  look  on  him  as  merely  a  man  without  sin — as  a 
man  such  as  Adam  probably  was  before  the  fall." 

"Do  we  know  enough  of  these  matters,  Mary,  to  justify 
us  in  allowing  them  to  interfere  with  our  happiness  ?" 

"  We  are  told  that  they  are  all-essential  to  our  happiness 
— not  in  the  sense  you  may  mean,  Roswell,  but  in  one  of 
far  higher  import — and  we  cannot  neglect  them,  without 
paying  the  penalty." 

"I  think  you  carry  these  notions  too  far,  dearest  Mary, 
and  that  it  is  possible  for  man  and  wife  most  heartily  to 
love  each  other,  and  to  be  happy  in  each  other,  without 
their  thinking  exactly  alike  on  religion.  How  many  good 
and  pious  women  do  you  see,  who  are  contented  and  pros 
perous  as  wives  and  mothers,  and  who  are  members  of 
meeting,  but  whose  husbands  make  no  profession  of  any 
sort !'' 

"  That  may  be  true,  or  not.  I  lay  no  claim  to  a  right 
to  judge  of  any  other's  duties,  or  manner  of  viewing  what 
they  ought  to  do.  Thousands  of  girls  marry  without  feel 
ing  the  very  obligations  that  they  profess  to  reverence ;  and 
when,  in  after  life,  deeper  convictions  come,  they  cannot 
cast  aside  the  connections  they  have  previously  formed,  if 
they  would;  and  probably  would  not,  if  they  could.  That 
is  a  different  thing  from  a  young  woman,  who  has  a  deep 
sense  of  what  she  owes  to  her  Redeemer,  becoming  delibe 
rately,  and  with  a  full  sense  of  what  she  is  doing,  the  wife 
of  one  who  regards  her  God  as  merely  a  man — I  care  nol 
how  you  qualify  this  opinion,  by  saying  a  pure  and  sinless 


THE     SEA     LIONS.  101 

man;  it  will  be  man,  still.  The  difference  between  God 
and  man  is  too  immense,  to  be  frittered  away  by  any  such 
qualifications  as  that." 

"  But,  if  I  find  it  impossible  to  believe  all  you  believe, 
Mary,  surely  you  would  not  punish  me  for  having  the  sin 
cerity  to  tell  you  the  truth,  and  the  whole  truth." 

"  No,  indeed,  Roswell,"  answered  the  honest  girl,  gently, 
not  to  say  tenderly.  "  Nothing  has  given  me  a  better  opi 
nion  of  your  principles,  Roswell — a  higher  notion  of  what 
your  upright  and  frank  character  really  is,  than  the  manly 
way  in  which  you  have  admitted  the  justice  of  my  suspi 
cions  of  your  want  of  faith — of  faith,  as  I  consider  faith  can 
alone  exist.  This  fair  dealing  has  made  me  honour  you, 
and  esteem  you,  in  addition  to  the  more  girlish  attachment 
that  I  do  not  wish  to  conceal  from  you,  at  least,  I  have  so 
long  felt." 

"Blessed  Mary!"  exclaimed  Roswell  Gardiner,  almost 
ready  to  fall  down  on  his  knees  and  worship  the  pretty  en 
thusiast,  who  sat  at  his  side,  with  a  countenance  in  which 
intense  interest  in  his  welfare  was  beaming  from  two  of  the 
softest  and  sweetest  blue  eyes  that  maiden  ever  bent  on  a 
youth  in  modest  tenderness,  whatever  disposition  he  might 
be  in  to  accept  her  God  as  his  God.  "  How  can  one  so  kind 
in  all  other  respects,  prove  so  cruel  in  this  one  particular !" 

"  Because  that  one  particular,  as  you  term  it,  Roswell, 
is  all  in  all  to  her,"  answered  the  girl,  with  a  face  that  was 
now  flushed  with  feeling.  "  I  must  answer  you  as  Joshua 
told  the  Israelites  of  old — 'Choose  you,  this  day,  whom 
you  will  serve  ;  whether  the  gods  which  your  fathers  served, 
that  were  on  the  other  side  of  the  flood,  or  the  gods  of  the 
Amorites,  in  whose  land  ye  dwell :  bat  as  for  me  and  my 
housf,  we  will  serve  the  Lord.'  " 

"  Do  you  class  me  with  the  idolaters  and  pagans  of  Pa 
lestine  ?"  demanded  Gardiner,  reproachfully. 

"  You  have  said  it,  Roswell.  It  is  not  I,  but  yourself, 
who  have  thus  classed  you.  You  worship  your  reason, 
instead  of  the  one  true  and  living  God.  This  is  idolatry 
of  the  worst  character,  since  the  idol  is  never  seen  by  the 
devotee,  and  he  does  not  know  of  its  existence." 

"  You  consider  it  then  idolatry  for  one  to  use  those  gifts 
which  he  has  received  from  his  Maker,  and  to  treat  the 


102  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

most  important  of  all  subjects,  as  a  rational  being,  instead 
of  receiving  a  creed  blindly,  and  without  thought?" 

"  If  what  you  call  thought  could  better  the  matter  ;  if  it 
were  sufficient  to  comprehend  and  master  this  subject, 
there  might  be  force  in  what  you  say.  But  what  is  this 
boasted  reason,  after  all?  It  is  not  sufficient  to  explain  a 
single  mystery  of  the  creation,  though  there  are  thousands. 
I  know  there  are,  nay  there  must  be,  a  variety  of  opinions 
among  those  who  look  to  their  reasons,  instead  of  accept 
ing  the  doctrine  of  revelation,  for  the  character  of  Christ; 
but  I  believe  all,  who  are  not  open  infidels,  admit  that  the 
atonement  of  his  death  was  sufficient  for  the  salvation  of 
men  :  now,  can  you  explain  this  part  of  the  theory  of  our 
religion  any  more  than  you  can  explain  the  divine  nature 
of  the  Redeemer?  Can  you  reason  any  more  wisely  touch 
ing  the  fall,  than  touching  the  redemption  itself?  I  know 
I  am  unfit  to  treat  of  matters  of  this  profound  nature,"  con 
tinued  Mary,  modestly,  though  with  great  earnestness  and 
beauty  of  manner  ;  "  but,  to  me,  it  seems  very  plain  that 
the  instant  circumstances  lead  us  beyond  the  limits  of  our 
means  of  comprehension,  we  are  to  believe  in,  and  not  to 
reason  on,  revelation.  The  whole  history  of  Christianity 
teaches  this.  Its  first  ministers  were  uneducated  men ; 
men  who  were  totally  ignorant  until  enlightened  by  their 
faith ;  and  all  the  lessons  it  teaches  are  to  raise  faith,  and 
faith  in  the  Redeemer,  high  above  all  other  attainments, 
as  the  one  great  acquisition  that  includes  and  colours  every 
other.  When  such  is  the  fact,  the  heart  does  not  make  a 
stumbling-block  of  every  thing  that  the  head  cannot  under 
stand." 

"  1  do  not  know  how  it  is,"  answered  Roswell  Gardiner, 
influenced,  though  unconvinced ;  «*  but  when  I  talk  with 
you  on  this  subject,  Mary,  I  cannot  do  justice  to  my  opi 
nions,  or  to  the  manner  in  which  I  reason  on  them  with 
my  male  friends  and  acquaintance.  I  confess  it  does  ap 
pear  to  me  illogical,  unreasonable — I  scarce  know  how  to 
designate  what  I  mean — but,  improbable,  that  God  should 
suffer  himself,  or  his  Son,  to  be  crucified  by  beings  that 
he  himself  created,  or  that  he  should  feel  a  necessity  for 
any  such  course,  in  order  to  redeem  beings  he  had  himself 
brought  into  existence." 


THE    SEA    LIONS.  103 

"  If  there  be  any  argument  in  the  last,  Roswell,  it  is  an 
argument  as  much  against  the  crucifixion  of  a  man,  as 
against  the  crucifixion  of  fine  of  the  Trinity  itself.  I  un 
derstand  you  to  believe  that  such  a  being  as  Jesus  of  Na 
zareth  did  exist;  that  he  was  crucified  for  our  redemption ; 
and  that  the  atonement  was  accepted,  and  acceptable  be 
fore  God  the  Father.  Now,-  is  it  not  just  as  difficult  to 
understand  how,  or  why,  this  should  be,  as  to  understand 
the  common  creed  of  Christians?" 

"  Surely,  there  is  a  vast  difference  Between  the  cruci 
fixion  of  a  subordinate  being,  and  the  crucifixion  of  one 
who  made  a  part  of  the  Godhead  itself,  Mary  !  I  can  ima 
gine  the  first,  though  I  may  not  pretend  to  understand  its 
reasons,  or  why  it  was  necessary  it  should  be  so ;  but,  I 
am  certain  you  will  not  mistake  my  motive  when  I  gay,  I 
cannot  imagine  the  other." 

"Make  no  apologies  to  me,  Roswell ;  look  rather  to 
that  Dread  Being  whose  teachings,  through  chosen  minis 
ters,  you  disregard.  As  for  what  you  say,  I  can  fully  feel 
its  truth.  I  do  not  pretend  to  understand  why  such  a  sa 
crifice  should  be  necessary,  but  I  believe  it,  feel  it ;  and 
believing  and  feeling  it,  I  cannot  but  adore  and  worship 
the  Son,  who  quitted  heaven  to  come  on  earth,  and  suf 
fered,  that  we  might  possess  eternal  life.  It  is  all  mystery 
to  me,  as  is  the  creation  itself,  our  existence,  God  himself, 
and  all  else  that  my  mind  is  too  limited  to  comprehend. 
But,  Roswell,  if  I  believe  a  part  of  the  teachings  of  the 
Christian  church,  I  must  believe  all.  The  apostles,  who 
were  called  by  Christ  in  person,  who  lived  in  his  very  pre 
sence,  who  knew  nothing  except  as  the  Holy  Spirit  prompt 
ed,  worshipped  him  as  the  Son  of  God,  as  one  *  who  thought 
it  not  robbery  to  be  equal  with  God  ;'  and  shall  I,  ignorant 
and  uninspired,  pretend  to  set  up  my  feeble  means  of  rea 
soning,  in  opposition  to  their  written  instructions!" 

"  Yet  must  each  of  us  stand  or  fall  by  the  means  he  pos 
sesses,  and  the  use  he  makes  of  them." 

"  That  is  quite  true,  Roswell ;  and  ask  yourself  the  use 
to  which  you  put  your  own  faculties.  I  do  not  deny  that 
we  are  to  exercise  our  reason,  but  it  is  within  the  bounds 
set  for  its  exercise.  We  may  examine  the  evidence  of 
Christianity,  and  determine  for  ourselves  how  far  it  is  sup- 


104  THE     SEA     LIONS. 

ported  by  reasonable  and  sufficient  proofs ;  beyond  this  we 
cannot  be  expected  to  go,  else  might  we  be  required  to 
comprehend  the  mystery  of  our  own  existence,  which  just 
as  much  exceeds  our  understanding  as  any  qther.  We  are 
told  that  man  was  created  in  the  image  of  his  Creator, 
which  means  that  there  is  an  immortal  and  spiritual  part 
of  him  that  is  entirely  different  from  the  material  creature 
One  perishes,  temporarily  at  least — a  limb  can  be  severed 
from  the  body  and  perish,  even  while  the  body  survives; 
but  it  is  not  so  with  that  which  has  been  created  in  the 
image  of  the  deity.  That  is  imperishable,  immortal,  spi 
ritual,  though  doomed  to  dwell  awhile  in  a  tenement  of 
clay.  Now,  why  is  it  more  difficult  to  believe  that  pure 
divinity  may  have  entered  into  the  person  of  one  man,  than 
to  believe,  nay  to  feel,  that  the  image  of  God  has  entered 
into  the  persons  of  so  many  myriads  of  men  ?  You  not 
only  overlook  all  this,  Roswell,  but  you  commit  the,  to  me 
inexplicable,  mistake  of  believing  a  part  of  a  mystery,  while 
you  hesitate  about  believing  all.  Were  you  to  deny  the 
merits  of  the  atonement  altogether,  your  position  would  be 
much  stronger  than  it  is  in  believing  what  you  do.  But, 
Roswell,  we  will  not  embitter  the  moment  of  separation  by 
talking  more  on  this  subject,  now.  I  have  other  things  to 
gay  to  you,  and  but  little  time  to  say  them  in.  The  promise 
you  have  asked  of  me  to  remain  single  until  your  return,  I 
most  freely  make.  It  costs  me  nothing  to  give  you  this 
pledge,  since  there  is  scarce  a  possibility  of  my  ever  mar 
rying  another." 

Mary  repeated  these  words,  or  rather  this  idea  in  other 
words,  to  Roswell  Gardiner's  great  delight;  and  again 
and  again  he  declared  that  he  could  now  penetrate  the 
icy  seas  with  a  light  heart,  confident  he  should  find  her, 
on  his  return,  disengaged,  and,  as  he  hoped,  as  much  dis 
posed  to  regard  him  with  interest  as  she  then  was.  Never 
theless,  Gardiner  did  not  deceive  himself  as  to  Mary's  in 
tentions.  He  knew  her  and  her  principles  too  well,  to 
fancy  that  her  resolution  would  be  very  likely  to  falter. 
Notwithstanding  their  long  and  intimate  knowledge  of  each 
other,  at  no  time  had  she  ever  betrayed  a  weakness  that 
promised  to  undermine  her  high  sense  of  duty  ;  and  as  time 
increased  her  means  of  judging  of  what  those  duties  were, 


THE     SEA     LIONS.  105 

her  submission  to  them  seemed  to  be  stronger  and  stronger. 
Had  there  been  anything  stern  or  repulsive  in  Mary's  man 
ner  of  manifesting  the  feeling  that  was  uppermost  in  her 
mind,  one  of  Roswell  Gardiner's  temperament  would  have 
been  very  apt  to  shake  off  her  influence ;  but,  so  far  from 
this  being  the  case,  she  ever  met  him  and  parted  from  him 
with  a  gentle  and  ingenuous  interest  in  his  welfare,  and 
occasionally  with  much  womanly  tenderness.  He  knew 
that  she  prayed  for  him  daily,  as  fervently  as  she  prayed  for 
herself;  and  even  this,  he  hoped,  would  serve  to  keep  alive 
her  interest  in  him,  during  his  absence.  In  this  respect 
our  young  sailor  showed  no  bad  comprehension  of  human 
nature,  nothing  being  more  likely  to  maintain  an  influence 
of  this  sort,  than  the  conviction  that  on  ourselves  depends 
the  happiness  or  interests  of  the  person  beloved. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

"  And  I  have  loved  thee,  Ocean  !  and  my  joy 
Of  youthful  sports  was  on  thy  breast  to  be 
Borne,  like  thy  bubbles,  onward;   from  a  boy 
I  wanton'd  with  thy  breakers — they  to  me 
Were  a  delight;  and  if  the  freshening  sea 
Made  them  a  terror — 'twas  a  pleasing  fear ; 
For  I  was,  as  it  were,  a  child  of  thee, 
And  trusted  to  thy  billows,  far  and  near, 
And  laid  my  hand  upon  thy  mane — as  I  do  here." 

BTROJT. 

IT  was  past  the  turn  of  the  day  when  Roswell  Gardiner 
reached  his  vessel,  after  having  carefully  and  with  manly 
interest  in  all  that  belonged  to  her,  seen  Mary  to  her  home, 
and  taken  his  final  leave  of  her.  Of  that  parting  we  shall 
say  but  little.  It  was  touching  and  warm-hearted,  and  it 
was  rendered  a  little  solemn  by  Mary  Pratt's  putting  into 
her  lover's  hand  a  pocket-bible,  with  an  earnest  request 
that  he  would  not  forget  to  consult  its  pages.  She  added, 
at  the  same  time,  that  she  had  carefully  marked  those 


106  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

passages  which  she  wished  him  most  to  study  and  reflect 
on.  The  book  was  accepted  in  the  spirit  in  which  it  wag 
offered,  and  carefully  placed  in  a  little  case  that  contained 
about  a  hundred  volumes  of  different  works. 

As  the  hour  approached  for  lifting  the  anchor,  the  ner 
vousness  of  the  deacon  became  very  apparent  to  the  com 
mander  of  his  schooner.  At  each  instant  the  former  was 
at  the  latter's  elbow,  making  some  querulous  suggestion, 
or  asking  a  question  that  betrayed  the  agitated  and  unset 
tled  state  of  his  mind.  It  really  seemed  as  if  the  old  man, 
at  the  last  moment,  had  not  the  heart  to  part  with  his  pro 
perty,  or  to  trust  it  out  of  his  sight.  All  this  annoyed 
Roswell  Gardiner,  disposed  as  he  was,  at  that  instant,  to 
regard  every  person  and  thing  that  in  any  manner  pertain 
ed  to  Mary  Pratt,  with  indulgence  and  favour. 

"  You  will  be  particular  about  them  islands,  Captain 
Gar'ner,  and  not  get  the  schooner  ashore,"  said  the  deacon, 
for  the  tenth  time  at  least.  "  They  tell  me  the  tide  runs 
like  a  horse  in  the  high  latitudes,  and  that  seamen  are 
often  stranded  by  them,  before  they  know  where  they  are." 

"Ay,  ay,  sir;  I'll  try  and  bear  it  in  mind,"  answered 
Gardiner,  vexed  at  being  importuned  so  often  to  recollect 
that  which  there  was  so  little  likelihood  of  his  forgetting; 
"  I  am  an  old  cruiser  in  those  seas,  deacon,  and  know  all 
about  the  tides.  Well,  Mr.  Hazard,  what  is  the  news  of 
the  anchor?" 

"  We  are  short,  sir,  and  only  wait  for  orders  to  go  on, 
and  get  clear  of  the  ground." 

"  Trip,  at  once,  sir;  and  so  farewell  to  America  —  or  to 
this  end  of  it,  at  least." 

"  Then  the  keys,  they  tell  me,  are  dangerous  naviga 
tion,  Gar'ner,  and  a  body  needs  have  all  his  eyes  about 
him." 

"All  places  have  their  dangers  to  your  sleepy  navigator, 
deacon ;  but  the  man  who  keeps  his  eyes  open  has  little  to 
fear.  Had  you  given  us  a  chronometer,  there  would  not 
have  been  one-half  the  risk  there  will  be  without  one." 

This  had  been  a  bone  of  contention  between  the  mastei 
of  the  Sea  Lion  and  his  owner.  Chronometers  were  not, 
by  any  means,  in  as  general  use  at  the  period  of  our  tale 
as  they  are  to-day ;  arid  the  deacon  abhorred  the  expense  to 


THE    SEA    LIONS.  107 

which  such  an  article  would  have  put  him.  Could  he  have 
got  one  at  a  fourth  of  the  customary  price  he  might  have 
been  tempted  ;  but  it  formed  no  part  of  his  principles  of 
saving  to  anticipate  and  prevent  waste  by  liberality. 

No  sooner  was  the  schooner  released  from  the  ground 
than  her  sails  were  filled,  and  she  went  by  the  low  spit  of 
sand  already  mentioned,  with  the  light  south-west  breeze 
still  blowing  in  her  favour,  and  an  ebb  tide.  Everything 
appeared  propitious,  and  no  vessel  probably  ever  left  home 
under  better  omens.  The  deacon  remained  on  board  until 
Baiting  Joe,  who  was  to  act  as  his  boatman,  reminded  him 
of  the  distance  and  the  probability  that  the  breeze  would 
go  down  entirely  with  the  sun.  As  it  was,  they  had  to 
contend  with  wind  and  tide,  and  it  would  require  all  his 
own  knowledge  of  the  eddies  to  get  the  whale-boat  up  to 
Oyster  Pond  in  anything  like  reasonable  time.  Thus  ad 
monished,  the  owner  tore  himself  away  from  his  beloved 
craft,  giving  "  young  Gar'ner"  as  many  'last  words'  as  if 
he  were  about  to  be  executed.  Roswell  had  a  last  word  on 
his  part,  however,  in  the  shape  of  a  message  to  Mary. 

"  Tell  Mary,  deacon,"  said  the  young  "sailor,  in  an  aside, 
"  that  I  rely  on  her  promise,  and  that  I  shall  think  of  her, 
whether  it  be  under  the  burning  sun  of  the  line,  or  among 
the  ice  of  the  antarctic." 

"  Yes,  yes ;  that's  as  it  should  be,"  answered  the  deacon, 
heartily.  "  I  like  your  perseverance,  Gar'ner,  and  hope 
the  gal  will  come  round  yet,  and  I  shall  have  you  for  a  ne 
phew.  There  's  nothing  that  takes  the  women's  minds  like 
money.  Fill  up  the  schooner  with  skins  and  ile,  and  bring 
back  that  treasure,  and  you  make  as  sure  of  Mary  for  a 
wife  as  if  the  parson  had  said  the  benediction  over  you." 

Such  was  Deacon  Pratt's  notion  of  his  niece,  as  well  as 
of  the  female  sex.  For  months  he  regarded  this  speech  as 
a  coup  de  maitre,  while  Roswell  Gardiner  forgot  it  in  half 
an  hour ;  so  much  better  than  the  uncle  did  the  lover  com 
prehend  the  character  of  the  niece. 

The  Sea  Lion,  of  Oyster  Pond,  had  now  cast  off  the  last 
ligament  which  connected  her  with  the  land.  She  had  no 
pilot,  none  being  necessary,  or  usual,  in  those  waters;  all 
that  a  vessel  had  to  do  being  to  give  Long  Island  a  suffi 
cient  berth  in  rounding  its  eastern  extremity.  The  boat 
10 


108  THE     SEA    LIONS. 

was  soon  shut  in  by  Gardiner's  Island,  and  thenceforth  no 
thing  remained  but  the  ties  of  feeling  to  connect  those 
bold  adventurers  with  their  native  country.  It  is  true  that 
Connecticut,  and  subsequently  Rhode  Island,  was  yet  visi 
ble  on  one  hand,  and  a  small  portion  of  New  York  on  the 
other;  but  as  darkness  came  to  close  the  scene,  even  that 
means  of  communication  was  soon  virtually  cut  off.  The 
light  on  Montauk,  for  hours,  was  the  sole  beacon  for  these 
bold  mariners,  who  rounded  it  about  midnight,  fairly  meet 
ing  the  long,  rolling  swell  of  the  broad  Atlantic.  Then  the 
craft  might  be  said  to  be  at  sea  for  the  first  time. 

The  Sea  Lion  was  found  to  perform  well.  She  had  been 
constructed  with  an  eye  to  comfort,  as  well  as  to  sailing, 
and  possessed  that  just  proportion  in  her  hull  which  carried 
her  over  the  surface  of  the  waves  like  a  duck.  This  quality 
is  of  more  importance  to  a  small  than  to  a  large  vessel,  for 
the  want  of  momentum  renders  what  is  termed  "  burying" 
a  very  deadening  process  to  a  light  craft.  In  this  very  im 
portant  particular  Roswell  was  soon  satisfied  that  the  ship 
wright  had  done  his  duty. 

As  the  wind  still  stood  at  south-west,  the  schooner  was 
brought  upon  an  easy  bowline,  as  soon  as  she  had  Montauk 
light  dead  to  windward.  This  new  course  carried  her  out 
to  sea,  steering  south-south-east,  a  little  easterly,  under 
everything  that  would  draw.  The  weather  appearing  set 
tled,  and  there  being  no  signs  of  a  change,  Gardiner  now 
went  below  and  turned  in,  leaving  the  care  of  the  vessel 
to  the  proper  officer  of  the  watch,  with  an  order  to  call 
him  at  sunrise.  Fatigue  soon  asserted  its  power,  and  the 
young  man  was  shortly  in  as  profound  a  sleep  as  if  he  had 
not  just  left  a  mistress  whom  he  almost  worshipped  for  an 
absence  of  two  years,  and  to  go  on  a  voyage  that  probably 
would  expose  him  to  more  risks  and  suffering  than  any 
other  enterprise  then  attempted  by  sea-faring  men.  Our 
young  sailor  thought  not  of  the  last  at  all,  but  he  fell  asl&ep 
dreaming  of  Mary. 

The  master  of  the  Sea  Lion  of  Oyster  Pond  was  called 
precisely  at  the  hour  he  had  named.  Five  minutes  sufficed 
to  bring  him  on  deck,  where  he  found  everything  as  he 
had  left  it,  with  the  exception  of  the  schooner  itself.  In 
the  six  hours  he  had  been  below,  his  vessel  had  moved  her 


THE     SEA    LIONS.  109 

position  out  to  sea  nearly  forty  miles.  No  land  was  now  to 
be  seen,  the  American  coast  being  very  tame  and  unpic- 
turesque  to  the  eye,  as  the  purest  patriot,  if  he  happen  to 
know  anything  of  other  parts  of  the  world,  must  be  con 
strained  to  admit.  A  low,  monotonous  coast,  that  is  scarcely 
visible  at  a  distance  of  five  leagues,  is  certainly  not  to  be 
named  in  the  same  breath  with  those  glorious  shores  of  the 
Mediterranean,  for  instance,  where  nature  would  seem  to 
have  exhausted  herself  in  uniting  the  magnificent  with  the 
bewitching.  On  this  continent,  or  on  our  own  portion  of 
it  at  least,  we  must  be  content  with  the  useful,  and  lay  no 
great  claims  to  the  beautiful ;  the  rivers  and  bays  giving 
us  some  compensation  in  their  admirable  commercial  faci 
lities,  for  the  sameness,  not  to  say  tameness,  of  the  views. 
We  mention  these  things  in  passing,  as  a  people  that  does 
not  understand  its  relative  position  in  the  scale  of  nations, 
us  a  little  apt  to  fall  into  errors  that  do  not  contribute  to  its 
character  or  respectability;  more  especially  when  they 
exhibit  a  self-love  founded  altogether  on  ignorance,  and 
which  has  been  liberally  fed  by  flattery. 

The  first  thing  a  seaman  does  on  coming  on  deck,  after 
a  short  absence,  is  to  look  to  windward,  in  order  to  see 
how  the  wind  stands,  and  what  are  the  prospects  of  the 
weather.  Then  he  turns  his  eyes  aloft  to  ascertain  what 
canvass  is  spread,  and  how  it  draws.  Occasionally,  the 
order  of  these  observations  is  changed,  the  first  look  being 
sometimes  bestowed  on  the  sails,  and  the  second  on  the 
clouds.  Roswell  Gardiner,  however,  cast  his  first  glance 
this  morning  towards  the  southward  and  westward,  and 
perceived  that  the  breeze  promised  to  be,  steady.  On  look 
ing  aloft,  he  .was  well  satisfied  with  the  manner  in  which 
everything  drew ;  then  he  turned  to  the  second  mate,  who 
had  the  watch,  whom  he  addressed  cheerfully,  and  with  a 
courtesy  that  is  not  always  observed  among  sailors. 

"A  fine  morning,  sir,"  said  Roswell  Gardiner,  "  and  a 
good-bye  to  America.  We've  a  long  road  to  travel,  Mr. 
Green,  but  we've  a  fast  boat  to  do  it  in.  Here  is  an  offing 
ready  made  to  our  hands.  Nothing  in  sight  to  the  westward; 
not  so  much  as  a  coaster,  even !  It 's  too  early  for  the  out 
ward-bound  craft  of  the  last  ebb,  and  too  late  for  those  that 


110  THE     SEA    LIONS. 

sailed  the  tide  before.  I  never  saw  this  bight  of  the  coast 
clearer  of  canvass." 

"Ay,  ay,  sir;  it  does  seem  empty,  like.  Here's  a  chap, 
however,  to  leeward,  who  appears  inclined  to  try  his  rate 
of  sailing  with  us.  Here  he  is,  sir,  a  very  little  abaft  the 
beam;  and,  as  near  as  I  can  make  him  out,  he's  a  fore- 
tawsail  schooner,  of  about  our  own  dimensions;  if  you'll 
just  look  at  him  through  this  glass,  Captain  Gar'ner,  you  '11 
see  he  has  not  only  our  rig,  but  our  canvass  set." 

"  You  are  right  enough,  Mr.  Green,"  returned  Roswell, 
after  getting  his  look.  "  He  is  a  schooner  of  about  our 
tonnage,  and  under  precisely  our  canvass.  How  long  has 
the  fellow  bore  as  he  does  now  ?" 

"  He  came  out  from  under  Blok  Island  a  few  hours 
since,  and  we  made  him  by  moonlight.  The  question  with 
me  is,  where  did  that  chap  come  from?  A  Stunnin'ton 
man  would  have  naturally  passed  to  windward  of  Blok 
Island ;  and  a  Newport  or  Providence  fellow  would  not 
have  fetched  so  far  to  windward  without  making  a  stretch 
or  two  on  purpose.  That  schooner  has  bothered  me  ever 
since  it  was  daylight;  for  I  can't  place  him  where  he  is 
by  any  traverse  my  poor  1'arnin'  can  work !" 

"  She  does  seem  to  be  out  of  her  way.  Possibly  it  is  a 
schooner  beating  up  for  the  Hook,  and  rinding  herself  too 
close  in,  she  is  standing  to  the  southward  to  get  an  offing 
again." 

"Not  she,  sir.  She  came  out  from  behind  Blok,  and  a 
craft  of  her  size  that  wanted  to  go  to  the  westward,  and 
which  found  itself  so  close  in,  would  have  taken  the  first 
of  the  flood  and.. gone  through  the  Race  like  a  shot.  No, 
no,  Captain  Gar'ner ;  this  fellow  is  bound  south  as  well  as 
ourselves,  and  it  is  quite  onaccountable  how  he  should  be 
just  where  he  is — so  far  to  windward,  or  so  far  to  leeward, 
as  a  body  might  say.  A  south-south-east  course,  from  any 
place  behind  Point  Judith,  would  have  taken  him  off  near 
No  Man's  Land,  and  here  he  is  almost  in  a  line  with  Blok 
Island  !" 

"  Perhaps  he  is  out  of  New  London,  or  some  of  the  ports 
on  the  main,  and  being  bound  to  the  West  Indies  he  has 
been  a  little  careless  about  weathering  the  island.  It 's  no 
great  matter,  after  all." 


THE     SEA    LIONS.  Ill 

**It  is  some  such  matter,  Captain  Gar'ner,  as  walkin' 
round  a  meetin'-'us'  when  your  ar'n'd  is  in  at  the  door  in 
front.  But  there  was  no  such  craft  in  at  Stunnin'tun  or 
New  London,  as  I  know  from  havin'  been  at  both  places 
within  the  last  eight-and-forty  hours." 

"  You  begin  to  make  me  as  curious  about  this  fellow  as 
you  seem  to  be  yourself,  sir.  And  now  I  think  the  matter 
all  over,  it  is  somewhat  extr'or'nary  he  should  be  just  where 
he  is.  It  is,  however,  a  very  easy  thing  to  get  a  nearer  look 
at  him,  and  it's  no  great  matter  to  us,  intending  as  we  do 
to  make  the  islands  off  the  Cape  de  Verde,  if  we  do  lose  a 
littte  of  our  weatherly  position — keep  the  schooner  away  a 
point,  and  get  a  small  pull  on  your  weather  braces  —  give 
her  a  little  sheet  too,  fore  and  aft,  sir.  So,  that  will  do  — 
keep  her  steady  at  that — south-east  and  by  south.  In  two 
hours  we  shall  just  about  speak  this  out-of-the-way  joker." 

As  every  command  was  obeyed,  the  Sea  Lion  was  soon 
running  off  free,  her  bowlines  hanging  loose,  and  all  her 
canvass  a  rap  full.  The  change  in  her  line  of  sailing 
drought  the  sail  to  leeward,  a  little  forward  of  her  beam  ; 
but  the  movement  of  the  vessel  that  made  the  freest  wind 
was  consequently  the  most  rapid.  In  the  course  of  half 
an  hour  the  stranger  was  again  a  little  abaft  the  beam,  and 
he  was  materially  nearer  than  when  first  seen.  No  change 
was  made  in  the  route  of  the  stranger,  who  now  seemed 
disposed  to  stand  out  to  sea,  with  the  wind  as  it  was,  on 
an  easy  bowline,  without  paying  any  attention  to  the  sail 
in  sight. 

It  was  noon  ere  the  two  schooners  came  within  hail  of 
each  other.  Of  course,  as  they  drew  nearer  and  nearer, 
it  was  possible  for  those  on  board  of  each  to  note  the  ap 
pearance,  equipments,  and  other  peculiarities  of  his  neigh 
bour.  In  size,  there  was  no  apparent  difference  between 
the  vessels,  and  there  was  a  somewhat  remarkable  resem 
blance  in  the  details. 

"That  fellow  is  no  West  India  drogger,"  said  Roswell 
Gardiner,  when  less  than  a  mile  from  the  stranger.  "  He 
carries  a  boat  on  deck,  as  we  do,  and  has  one  on  each 
quarter,  too.  Can  it  be  possible  that  he  is  bound  after 
seals,  as  well  as  we  are  ourselves !" 

"I  believe  you're  right,  sir,"  answered  Hazard,  the 
10* 


112  THE     SEA     LIONS. 

chief-mate,  who  was  now  on  deck.  "There's  a  sealing 
look  about  the  gentleman,  if  I  know  my  own  complexion. 
It's  odd  enough,  Captain  Gar'ner,  that  two  of  us  should 
come  together,  out  here  in  the  offing,  and  both  of  us  bound 
to  the  other  end  of  the  'arth !" 

"There  is  nothing  so  very  remarkable  in  that,  Mr.  Ha 
zard,  when  we  remember  that  the  start  must  be  properly 
timed  for  those  who  wish  to  be  off  Cape  Horn  in  the  sum 
mer  season.  We  shall  neither  of  us  get  there  much  before 
December,  and  1  suppose  the  master  of  yon  schooner  knows 
that  as  well  as  I  do  myself.  The  position  of  this  craft 
puzzles  me  far  more  than  anything  else  about  her.  From 
what  port  can  a  vessel  come,  that  she  should  be  just  here, 
with  the  wind  at  south-west?" 

"Ay,  sir,"  put  in  Green,  who  was  moving  about  the 
decks,  coiling  ropes  and  clearing  things  away,  "that's 
what  I  tell  the  chief-mate.  Where  can  a  craft  come  from, 
to  be  just  here,  with  this  wind,  if  she  don't  come  from 
Stunnin'tun.  Even  from  Stunnin'tun  she'd  be  out  of  her 
way ;  but  no  such  vessel  has  been  in  that  port  any  time 
these  six  weeks.  Here,  you  Stimson,  come  this  way  a  bit. 
Didn't  you  tell  me  something  of  having  seen  a  schooner  at 
New  Bedford,  that  was  about  our  build  and  burthen,  and 
that  you  understood  had  been  bought  for  a  sealer?" 

"  Ay,  ay,  sir,"  answered  Stimson,  as  bluff  an  old  sea- 
dog  as  ever  flattened  in  a  jib-sheet,  "  and  that's  the  craft, 
as  I'm  a  thinkin',  Mr.  Green.  She  had  an  animal  for  a 
figure-head,  and  that  craft  has  an  animal,  as  well  as  I  can 
judge,  at  this  distance." 

"  You  are  right  enough  there,  Stephen,"  cried  Roswell 
Gardiner,  "  and  that  animal  is  a  seal.  It 's  the  twin-brother 
of  the  sea  lion  we  carry  under  our  own  bowsprit.  There's 
some  proof  in  that,  tastes  agree  sometimes,  even  if  they  do 
differ  generally.  What  became  of  the  schooner  you  saw  ?" 

"  I  heard,  sir,  that  she  was  bought  up  by  some  Vineyard 
men,  and  was  taken  across  to  Hum'ses  Hull.  They  some 
times  fit  out  a  craft  there,  as  well  as  on  the  main.  I  should 
have  crossed  myself  to  see  what  they  was  at,  but  I  fell  in 
with  Mr.  Green,  and  shipped  aboard  here." 

"  An  adventure  by  which,  I  hope,  you  will  not  be  a  loser, 
my  hearty,"  put  in  the  captain.  "  And  you  think  that  is 


THE    SEA    LIONS.  113 

the  craft  which  was  built  at  New  Bedford,  and  fitted  out 
on  the  Vineyard?" 

"•  Sartain  of  it,  sir ;  for  I  know  the  figure-head,  and  all 
about  her  build." 

"  Hand  me  the  trumpet,  Mr.  Green ;  we  shall  soon  be 
near  enough  for  a  hail,  and  it  will  be  easy  to  learn  the 
truth." 

Roswell  Gardiner  waited  a  few  minutes  for  the  two 
schooners  to  close,  and  was  in  the  very  act  of  applying  the 
trumpet  to  his  mouth,  when  the  usual  salutation  was  sent 
across  the  water  from  the  stranger.  During  the  conversa 
tion  that  now  took  place,  the  vessels  gradually  drew  nearer 
to  each'other,  until  both  parties  laid  aside  their  trumpets, 
and  carried  on  the  discourse  with  the  unaided  voice. 

"  Schooner,  ahoy  !"  was  the  greeting  of  the  stranger,  and 
a  simple  "  Hilloa!"  the  answer. 

41  What  schooner  is  that,  pray  ?" 

"  The  Sea  Lion,  of  Oyster  Pond,  Long  Icland  ;  bound 
to  the  southward,  after  seal,  as  I  suppose  you  know  by  our 
outfit." 

"  When  did  you  leave  Oyster  Pond — and  how  did  you 
leave  your  owner,  the  good  Deacon  Pratt  ?" 

"  We  sailed  yesterday  afternoon,  on  the  first  of  the  ebb, 
and  the  deacon  left  us  as  we  weighed  anchor.  He  was 
well,  and  full  of  hope  for  our  luck.  What  schooner  is  that, 
pray?" 

"  The  Sea  Lion,  of  Hum'ses  Hull ;  bound  to  the  south 
ward,  after  seals,  as  you  probably  knew  by  our  outfit.  Who 
commands  that  schooner?" 

"  Captain  Roswell  Gar'ner — who  commands  aboard  you, 
pray  ?" 

"  Captain  Jason  Daggett,"  showing  himself  more  plainly, 
by  moving  out  of  the  line  of  the  main-rigging.  "  I  had 
the  pleasure  of  seeing  you  when  I  was  on  the  P'int,  look 
ing  after  my  uncle's  dunnage,  you  may  remember,  Captain 
Gar'ner.  'T  was  but  the  other  day,  and  you  are  not  likely 
to  have  forgotten  my  visit." 

"Not  at  all,  not  at  all,  Captain  Daggett;  though  I  had 
no  idea,  then,  that  you  intended  to  make  a  voyage  to  the 
southward  so  soon.  When  did  you  leave  the  Hole,  sir  V 


114  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

"  Day  before  yesterday,  a'ternoon.  We  came  out  of  the 
Hull  about  five  o'clock." 

"  How  had  you  the  wind,  sir?" 

"  Sou'-west,  and  sou'-west  and  by  south.  There  has 
been  but  little  change  in  that,  these  three  days." 

Roswell  Gardiner  muttered  something  to  himself;  but 
he  did  not  deem  it  prudent  to  utter  the  thoughts,  that  were 
just  then  passing  through  his  mind,  aloud. 

"  Ay,  ay,"  he  answered,  after  a  moment's  pause,  "  the 
wind  has  stood  there  the  whole  week ;  but  I  think  we  shall 
shortly  get  a  change.  There  is  an  easterly  feeling  in  the 
air." 

"Waal,  let  it  come.  With  this  offing,  we  couW  clear 
Hatteras  with  anything  that  wasn't  worse  than  a  south 
easter.  There  's  a  southerly  set,  in  here,  down  the  coast, 
for  two  or  three  hundred  miles." 

"A  heavy  south-easter  would  jam  us  in,  here,  between 
the  shoals,  in  a  way  I  shouldn't  greatly  relish,  sir.  I  like 
always  to  get  to  the  eastward  of  the  Stream,  as  soon  as  I 
can,  in  running  off  the  land." 

"  Very  true,  Captain  Gar'ner — very  true,  sir.  It  is  best 
to  get  outside  the  Stream,  if  a  body  can.  Once  there,  1 
call  a  craft  at  sea.  Eight-and-forty  hours  more  of  this  wind 
would  just  about  carry  us  there.  Waal,  sir,  as  w-e  're  bound 
on  the  same  sort  of  v'y'ge,  I  'm  happy  to  have  fallen  in  with 
you ;  and  I  see  no  reason  why  we  should  not  be  neigh 
bourly,  and  'gam'  it  a  little,  when  we  've  nothing  better  to 
do.  I  like  that  schooner  of  yours  so  well,  that  I've  made 
my  own  to  look  as  nearly  resembling  her  as  I  could.  You 
see  our  paint  is  exactly  the  same." 

"I  have  observed  that,  Captain  Daggett;  and  you  might 
say  the  same  of  the  figure-heads." 

"  Ay,  ay ;  when  I  was  over  on  the  P'int,  they  told  me 
the  name  of  the  carver,  in  Boston,  who  cut  your  seal,  and 
I  sent  to  him  to  cut  me  a  twin.  "If  they  lay  in  a  ship 
yard,  side  by  side,  I  don't  think  you  could  tell  one  from 
the  other." 

"  So  it  seems,  sir.  Pray  haven't  you  a  man  aboard  there 
of  the  name  of  Watson  ?" 

"Ay,  ay — he's  my  second-mate.  I  know  what  you 
mean,  Captain  Gar'ner — you  're  right  enough,  'tis  the  same 


THE     SEA     LIONS.  115 

hand  who  was  aboard  you ;  but  wanting  a  second  officer, 
I  offered  him  the  berth,  and  he  thought  that  better  than 
taking  a  foremast  lay  ifi  your  craft." 

This  explanation  probably  satisfied  all  who  heard  it, 
though  the  truth  was  not  more  than  half  told.  In  point  of 
fact,  Watson  was  engaged  as  Daggett's  second  mate  before 
he  had  ever  laid  eyes  on  Roswell  Gardiner,  and  had  been 
sent  to  watch  the  progress  of  the  work  on  Oyster  Pond,  as 
has  been  previously  stated.  It  was  so  much  in  the  natural 
order  of  events  for  a  man  to  accept  preferment  when  of. 
fered,  however,  that  even  Gardiner  himself  blamed  the  de 
linquent  for  the  desertion  far  less  than  he  had  previously 
done.  In  the  mean  time  the  conversation  proceeded. 

"  You  told  us  nothing  of  your  having  that  schooner  fit 
ting,  when  you  were  on  the  Point,"  observed  Roswell  Gar 
diner,  whose  thoughts  just  then  happened  to  advert  to  this 
particular  fact. 

"  My  mind  was  pretty  much  taken  up  with  the  affairs 
of  my  poor  uncle,  I  suppose,  Captain  Gar'ner.  Death  must 
visit  each  of  us,  once ;  nevertheless,  it  makes  us  all  melan 
choly  when  he  comes  among  friends." 

Now,  Roswell  Gardiner  was  not  in  the  least  sentimental, 
nor  had  he  the  smallest  turn  towards  indulging  in  moral 
inferences,  from  ordinary  events ;  but,  this  answer  seemed 
so  proper,  that  it  found  no  objection  in  his  mind.  Still, 
the  young  man  had  his  suspicions  on  the  subject  of  the 
equipment  of  the  other  schooner,  and  suspicions  that  were 
now  active  and  keen,  and  which  led  him  directly  to  fancy 
that  Daggett  had  also  some  clue  to  the  very  objects  he  was 
after  himself.  Singular  as  it  may  seem  at  first,  Deacon 
Pratt's  interests  were  favourably  affected  by  this  unexpected 
meeting  with  the  Sea  Lion  of  Holmes'  Hole.  From  the 
first,  Roswell  Gardiner  had  been  indisposed  to  give  full 
credit  to  the  statements  of  the  deceased  mariner,  ascribing 
no  small  part  of  his  account  to  artifice,  stimulated  by  a 
desire  to  render  himself  important.  But,  now  that  he  found 
one  of  this  man's  family  embarked  in  an  enterprise  similar 
to  his  own,  his  views  of  its  expediency  were  sensibly 
changed.  Perfectly  familiar  with  the  wary  economy  with 
which  every  interest  was  regulated  in  that  part  of  the  world, 
he  ^did  not  believe  a  company  of  Martha's  Vineyard  men 


116  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

would  risk  their  money  in  an  enterprise  that  they  had  not 
good  reasons  for  believing  would  succeed.  Although  it 
exceeded  his  means  to  appreciate  fully  the  information  pos 
sessed  by  the  Vineyard  folk,  and  covetousness  did  not 
quicken  his  faculties  on  this  subject,  as  they  had  quickened 
those  of  the  deacon,  he  could  see  enough  to  satisfy  his 
mind  that  either  the  sealing-islands,  or  the  booty  of  the  pi 
rates,  or  both,  had  a  reality,  in  the  judgments  of  others, 
which  had  induced  them  also  to  risk  their  money  in  turn 
ing  their  knowledge  to  account.  The  effect  of  this  convic 
tion  was  very  natural.  It  induced  Roswell  to  regard  the 
charts,  and  his  instructions,  and  all  connected  with  his 
voyage,  as  much  more  serious  matters  than  he  had  origi 
nally  been  inclined  to  do.  Until  now,  he  had  thought  it 
well  enough  to  let  the  deacon  have  his  fancies,  relying  on 
his  own  ability  to  obtain  a  cargo  for  the  schooner,  by  visit 
ing  sealing  stations  where  he  had  been  before ;  but,  now, 
he  determined  to  steer  at  once  for  Daggett's  Islands,  as  he 
and  his  owner  named  the  land  revealed  to  them,  and  ascer 
tain  what  could  be  done  there.  He  thought  it  probable 
the  other  Sea  Lion  might  wish  to  keep  him  company ;  but 
the  distance  was  so  great,  that  a  hundred  occasions  must 
occur  when  it  would  be  in  his  power  to  shake  off  such  a 
consort,  should  he  deem  it  necessary. 

For  several  hours  the  two  schooners  stood  on  in  com 
pany,  keeping  just  without  hailing  distance  apart,  and 
sailing  so  nearly  alike  as  to  render  it  hard  to  say  which 
craft  had  the  best  of  it.  There  was  nothing  remarkable  in 
the  fact  that  two  vessels,  built  for  the  same  trade,  should 
have  a  close  general  resemblance  to  each  other ;  but  it  was 
not  common  to  find  them  so  moulded,  stowed,  sparred  and 
handled,  that  their  rate  of  sailing  should  be  nearly  identical. 
If  there  was  any  difference,  it  was  slightly  in  favour  of  the 
Sea  Lion  of  the  Vineyard,  which  rather  drew  ahead  of  her 
consort,  if  consort  the  other  Sea  Lion  could  be  termed,  in 
the  course  of  the  afternoon. 

It  is  scarcely  necessary  to  say  that  many  were  the  specu 
lations  that  were  made  on  board  these  rival  vessels — com 
petitors  now  for  the  commonest  glories  of  their  pursuits,  as 
well  as  in  the  ultimate  objects  of  their  respective  voyages. 
On  the  part  of  Roswell  Gardiner  and  his  two  mates,  they 


THE    SEA    LIONS.  117 

did  not  fail,  in  particular,  to  comment  on  the  singularity 
of  the  circumstance  that  the  Sea  Lion,  of  the  Vineyard, 
should  be  so  far  out  of  her  direct  line  of  sailing. 

"Although  we  have  had  the  wind  at  sow-west"  (sow- 
west  always,  as  pronounced  by  every  seaman,  from  the 
Lord  High  Admiral  of  England,  when  there  happe.is  to  be 
such  a  ^functionary,  down  to  the  greenest  hand  on  board 
the  greenest  sealer)  "  for  these  last  few  days,"  said  Hazard, 
"anybody  can  see  we  shall  soon  have  easterly  weather. 
There  's  an  easterly  feel  in  the  air,  and  all  last  night  the 
water  had  an  easterly  glimmer  about  it.  Now,  why  a  man 
who  came  out  of  the  Vineyard  Sound,  and  who  had  no 
thing  to  do  but  just  to  clear  the  west  eend  of  his  own 
island,  and  then  lay  his  course  off  yonder  to  the  southward 
and  eastward,  should  bear  up  cluss  (Anglice,  close)  under 
Blok,  and  stretch  out  to  sea,  for  all  the  world  as  if  he  was 
a  Stunnin'tun  chap,  or  a  New  Lunnoner,  that  had  fallen  a 
little  to  leeward,  is  more  than  I  can  understand,  Captain 
Gar'ner!  Depend  on  it,  sir,  there's  a  reason  for't.  Men 
don't  put  schooners  into  the  water,  now-a-days,  and  give 
them  costly  outfits,  with  three  whale-boats,  and  sealin'  gear 
in  abundance,  just  for  the  fun  of  making  fancy  traverses, 
on  or  off  a  coast,  like  your  yacht  gentry,  who  never  know 
what  they  would  be  at,  and  who  never  make  a  v'y'ge  worth 
speaking  on." 

"  I  have  been  turning  all  this  over  in  my  mind,  Mr. 
Hazard,"  answered  the  young  master,  who  was  amusing 
himself  at  the  moment  with  strapping  a  small  block,  while 
he  threw  many  a  glance  at  the  vessel  that  was  just  as  close 
under  his  lee  as  comported  with  her  sailing.  "  There  is  a 
reason  for  it,  as  you  say ;  but,  I  can  find  no  other  than  the 
fact  that  she  has  come  so  much  out  of  her  way,  in  order 
to  fall  in  with  us;  knowing  that  we  were  to  come  round 
Montauk  at  a  particular  time." 

"  Well,  sir,  that  may  have  been  her  play!  Men  bound 
the  same  way  often  wish  to  fall  into  good  company,  to  make 
the  journey  seem  the  shorter,  by  making  it  so  much  the 
pleasanter." 

"  Those  fellows  can  never  suppose  the  two  schooners 
will  keep  in  sight  of  each  other  from  forty-one  degrees 
north  all  the  way  to  seventy  south,  01  perhaps  further 


118  THE     SEA     LIONS'. 

south  still !     If  we  remain  near  each  other  a  week,  'twill 
be  quite  out  of  the  common  way." 

"  I  don't  know  that,  sir.  I  was  once  in  a  sealer  that,  do 
all  she  could,  couldn't  get  shut  of  a  curious  neighbour. 
When  seals  are  scarce,  and  the  master  don't  know  where 
to  look  for  'em,  he  is  usually  glad  to  drop  into  some  vessel's 
wake,  if  it  be  only  to  pick  up  her  leavin's." 

"  Outfits  are  not  made  on  such  chances  as  that.  These 
Vineyard  people  know  where  they  are  going  as  well  as  we 
know  ourselves ;  perhaps  better." 

"  There  is  great  confidence  aboard  here,  in  the  master, 
Captain  Gar'ner.  I  overheard  the  watch  talking  the  matter 
over  early  this  morning ;  and  there  was  but  one  opinion 
among  them,  I  can  tell  you,  sir." 

"  Which  opinion  was,  Mr.  Hazard " 

"  That  a  lay  aboard  this  craft  would  be  worth  a  lay  and 
a  half  aboard  any  other  schooner  out  of  all  America! 
Sailors  go  partly  on  skill  and  partly  on  luck.  I've  known 
hands  that  wouldn't  ship  with  the  best  masters  that  ever 
sailed  a  vessel,  if  they  didn't  think  they  was  lucky  as  well 
as  skilful." 

"Ay,  ay,  it's  all  luck!  Little  do  these  fellows  think  of 
Providence  —  or  of  deserving,  or  undeserving.  Well,  I. 
hope  the  schooner  will  not  disappoint  them — or  her  maste- 
either.  But,  whaling  and  sealing,  and  trusting  to  the 
chances  of  the  ocean,  and  our  most  flattering  hopes,  may 
mislead  us  after  all." 

"Ay,  ay,  sir;  nevertheless,  Captain  Gar'ner  lias  a  name, 
and  men  will  trust  to  it !" 

Our  young  master  could  not  but  be  flattered  at  this, 
which  came  at  a  favourable  moment  to  sustain  the  resolu 
tions  awakened  by  the  competition  with  the  rival  schooner. 
Although  so  obviously  competitors,  and  that  in  a  matter  of 
trade,  the  interest  which  above  all  others  is  apt  to  make 
men  narrow-minded  and  hostile  to  each  other,  though  the 
axiom  would  throw  this  particular  reproach  on  doctors, 
there  were  no  visible  signs  that  the  two  vessels  did  not 
maintain  the  most  amicable  relations.  As  the  day  advanced 
the  wind  fell,  and  after  many  passages  of  nautical  compli 
ments,  by  means  of  signals  and  the  trumpet,  Roswel 
Gardiner  fairly  lowered  a  boat  into  the  water,  and 


THE    SEA     LIONS.  119 

went  a  "  gamming,"  as  it  is  termed,  on  board  the  other 
schooner. 

Each  of  these  little  vessels  was  well  provided  with  boats, 
and  those  of  the  description  in  common  use  among  whalers. 
A  whale-boat  differs  from  the  ordinary  jolly-boat,  launch, 
or  yawl — gigs,  barges,  dinguis,  &,c.  &c.,  being  exclusively 
for  the  service  of  vessels  of  war — in  the  following  particu 
lars :  viz.  —  It  is  sharp  at  both  ends,  in  order  that  it  may 
*  back  off,'  as  well  as  '  pull  on ;'  it  steers  with  an  oar,  in 
stead  of  with  a  rudder,  in  order  that  the  bows  may  be 
thrown  round  to  avoid  danger  when  not  in  motion ;  it  is 
buoyant,  and  made  to  withstand  the  shock  of  waves  at 
both  ends;  and  it  is  light  and  shallow,  though  strong,  that 
it  may  be  pulled  with  facility.  When  it  is  remembered  that 
one  of  these  little  egg-shells  —  little  as  vessels,  though  of 
good  size  as  boats  —  is  often  dragged  through  troubled 
waters  at  the  rate  of  ten  or  twelve  knots,  and  frequently  at 
even  a  swifter  movement,  one  can  easily  understand  how 
much  depends  on  its  form,  buoyancy  and  strength.  Among 
seamen,  it  is  commonlv  thought  that  a  whale-boat  is  the 
safest  craft  of  the  sort  in  which  men  can  trust  themselves 
in  rough  water. 

Captain  Daggett  received  his  guest  with  marked  civility, 
though  in  a  quiet,  eastern  way.  The  rum  and  water  were 
produced,  and  a  friendly  glass  was  taken  by  one  after  the 
other.  The  two  masters  drank  to  each  other's  success,  and 
many  a  conventional  remark  was  made  between  them  on 
the  subject  of  sea-lions,  sea-elephants,  and  the  modes  of 
capturing  such  animals.  Even  Watson,  semi-deserter  ^s 
he  was,  was  shaken  cordially  by  the  hand,  and  his  ques 
tionable  conduct  overlooked.  The  ocean  has  many  of  the 
aspects  of  eternity,  and  often  disposes  mariners  to  regard 
their  fellow-creatures  with  an  expansiveness  of  feeling  suit 
ed  to  their  common  situations.  Its  vastness  reminds  them 
of  the  time  that  has  neither  beginning  nor  end ;  its  cease 
less  movement,  of  the  never-tiring  impulses  of  human  pas 
sions;  and  its  accidents  and  dangers,  of  the  Providence 
which  protects  all  alike,  and  which  alone  prevents  our  be 
ing  abandoned  to  the  dominion  of  chance. 

Roswell  Gardiner  was  a  kind-hearted  man,  moreover, 
and  was  inclined  to  judge  his  fellows  leniently.  Thus  it 
11 


120  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

was  that  his  "  good  evening"  at  parting,  to  Watson,  was 
just  as  frank  and  sincere  as  that  he  bestowed  on  Captain 
Daggett  himself 


CHAPTER  IX. 

"  Roll  on,  thou  deep  and  dark  blue  ocean — roll ! 
Ten  thousand  fleets  sweep  over  thee  in  vain ; 
Man  marks  the  earth  with  ruin — his  control 
Stops  with  the  shore ; — upon  the  watery  plain 
The  wrecks  are  all  thy  deeds,  nor  doth  remain 
A  shadow  of  man's  ravage,  save  his  own, 
When  for  a  moment,  like  a  drop  of  rain, 
He  sinks  into  thy  depths  with  bubbling  groan, 

Without  a  grave,  unknell'd,  uncoffin'd,  and  unknown." 

BTHOK. 

THAT  evening  the  sun  set  in  clouds,  though  the  eastern 
horizon  was  comparatively  clear.  There  was,  however,  an 
unnatural  outline  to  objects,  by  which  their  dimensions 
were  increased,  and  in  some  degree  rendered  indefinite. 
We  do  not  know  the  reason  why  the  wind  at  east  should 
produce  these  phenomena,  nor  do  we  remember  ever  to 
have  met  with  any  attempt  at  a  solution ;  but  of  the  fact, 
we  are  certain,  by  years  of  observation.  In  what  is  called 
*  easterly  weather,'  objects  are  seen  through  the  medium  of 
a  refraction  that  is  entirely  unknown  in  a  clear  north 
wester;  the  crests  of  the  seas  emit  a  luminous  light  that  is 
far  more  apparent  than  at  other  times ;  and  the  face  of  the 
ocean,  at  midnight,  often  wears  the  aspect  of  a  clouded 
day.  The  nerves,  too,  answer  to  this  power  of  the  eastern 
winds.  We  have  a  barometer  within  that  can  tell  when 
the  wind  is  east  without  looking  abroad,  and  one  that  never 
errs.  It  is  true  that  allusions  are  often  made  to  these  pecu 
liarities,  but  where  are  we  to  look  for  the  explanation  ?  On 
the  coast  of  America  the  sea-breeze  comes  from  the  rising 
sun,  while  on  that  of  Europe  it  blows  from  the  land ;  bui 
no  difference  in  these  signs  of  its  influence  could  we  ever 
discover  on  account  of  this  marked  distinction. 


THE    SEA    LIONS.  121 

ftoswell  Gardiner  found  the  scene  greatly  changed  when 
he  came  on  deck  next  morning.  The  storm,  which  had 
been  brewing  so  long,  had  come  at  last,  and  the  wind  was 
olowing  a  little  gale  from  south-east.  The  quarter  from 
which  the  air  came  had  compelled  the  officer  of  the  watch 
to  haul  up  on  the  larboard  tack,  or  with  the  schooner's 
head  to  the  southward  and  westward ;  a  course  that  might 
do  for  a  few  days,  provided  it  did  not  blow  too  heavily. 
The  other  tack  would  not  have  cleared  the  shoals,  which 
stretched  away  to  a  considerable  distance  to  the  eastward. 
Hazard  had  got  in  his  flying-jib,  and  had  taken  the  bonnets 
off  his  foresail  and  jib,  to  prevent  the  craft  burying.  He 
had  also  single-reefed  his  mainsail  and  foretopsail.  The 
Sea  Lion,  of  the  Vineyard,  imitated  each  movement,  and 
was  brought  down  precisely  to  the  same  canvass  as  her 
consort,  arid  on  the  same  tack.  At  that  moment  the  two 
vessels  were  not  a  cable's  length  asunder,  the  Oyster 
Ponders  being  slightly  to  leeward.  Their  schooner,  how 
ever,  had  a  trifling  advantage  in  sailing  when  it  blew  fresh 
and  the  water  was  rough;  which  advantage  was  now 
making  itself  apparent,  as  the  two  craft  struggled  ahead 
through  the  troubled  element. 

"I  wish  we  were  two  hundred  miles  to  the  eastward," 
observed  the  young  master  to  his  first  officer,  as  soon  as 
his  eye  had  taken  in  the  whole  view.  "  i  am  afraid  we 
shall  get  jammed  in  on  Cape  Hatteras.  That  place  is 
always  in  the  way  with  the  wind  at  south-east  and  a  vessel 
going  to  the  southward.  We  are  likely  to  have  a  dirty  time 
of  it,  Mr.  Hazard." 

"Ay,  ay,  sir,  dirty  enough,"  was  the  careless  answer. 
"  I  've  known  them  that  would  go  back  and  anchor  in  Fort 
Pond  Bay,  or  even  in  Gardiner's,  until  this  south-easter 
had  blown  itself  out." 

"I  couldn't  think  of  that!  We  are  a  hundred  miles 
south-east  of  Montauk,  and  if  I  run  the  craft  into  any 
place,  it  shall  be  into  Charleston,  or  some  of  the  islands 
along  that  coast.  Besides,  we  can  always  ware  off  the 
land,  and  place  ourselves  a  day's  run  further  to  the  south 
ward,  and  we  can  then  give  the  shoals  a  wide  berth  on  the 
other  tack.  If  we  were  in  the  bight  of  the  coast  between 
Long  Island  and  Jersey,  't  would  be  another  matter ;  but, 


122  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

out  here,  where  we  are,  I  should  be  ashamed  to  look  the 
deacon  in  the  face  if  I  didn't  hold  on." 

"  I  only  made  the  remark,  Captain  Gar'ner,  by  way  of 
saying  something.  As  for  getting  to  the  southward,  close 
in  with  our  own  coast,  I  don't  know  that  it  will  be  of  much 
use  to  a  craft  that  wishes  to  stand  so  far  to  the  eastward, 
since  the  trades  must  be  met  well  to  windward,  or  they  had 
better  not  be  met  at  all.  For  my  part,  I  would  as  soon 
take  my  chance  of  making  a  passage  to  the  Cape  de  Verds 
or  their  neighbourhood,  by  lifting  my  anchor  from  Gardi- 
diner's  Bay,  three  days  hence,  as  by  meeting  the  next  shift 
of  wind  down  south,  off  Charleston  or  Tybee." 

"  We  should  be  only  five  hundred  miles  to  windward,  in 
the  latter  case,  did  the  wind  come  from  the  south-west, 
again,  as  at  this  season  of  the  year  it  is  very  likely  to  do. 
But,  it  is  of  no  consequence ;  men  bound  where  we  have 
got  to  go,  ought  not  to  run  into  port  every  time  the  wind 
comes  out  foul.  You  know  as  well  as  I  do,  Mr.  Hazard, 
that  away  down  south,  yonder,  a  fellow  thinks  a  gale  of 
wind  is  a  relief,  provided  it  brings  clear  water  with  it.  1 
would  rather  run  a  week  among  islands,  than  a  single  day 
among  icebergs.  One  knows  where  to  find  land,  for  that 
never  moves ;  but  your  mountains  that  float  about,  are  here 
to-day,  and  there  to-morrow." 

"  Quite  true,  sir,"  returned  Hazard,  "  and  men  that  take 
their  lays  in  sealers,  are  not  to  expect  anything  but  squalls. 
I  'm  ready  to  hold  on  as  long  as  our  neighbour  yonder ;  he 
seems  to  be  trimming  down  to  it,  as  if  in  raal  earnest  to 
get  ahead." 

This  was  true  enough.  The  Sea  Lion  of  the  Vineyard 
was  doing  her  best,  all  this  time ;  and  though  unable  to 
keep  her  station  on  her  consort's  weather  bow,  where  she 
had  been  most  of  the  morning,  she  was  dropped  so  very 
slowly  as  to  render  the  change  nearly  imperceptible.  Now, 
it  was,  that  the  officers  and  crews  of  these  two  craft  watched 
their  "  behaviour,"  as  it  is  technically  termed,  with  the 
closest  vigilance  and  deepest  interest.  Those  in  the  Oyster 
Pond  vessel  regarded  the  movements  of  their  consort,  much 
as  a  belle  in  a  ball-room  observes  the  effect  produced  by 
the  sister  belles  around  her ;  or  a  rival  physician  notes  the 
progress  of  an  operation,  that  is  to  add  new  laurels,  or  to 


THE    SEA    LIONS.  123 

cause  old  ones  to  wither.  Now,  the  lurch  was  commented 
on ;  then,  the  pitch  was  thought  to  be  too  heavy ;  and 
Green  was  soon  of  opinion  that  their  competitor  was  not 
as  easy  on  her  spars  as  their  own  schooner.  In  short, 
every  comparison  that  experience,  jealousy  or  skill  could 
suggest,  was  freely  made ;  and  somewhat  as  a  matter  of 
course,  in  favour  of  their  own  vessel.  That  which  was 
done  on  board  the  Sea  Lion  of  Oyster  Pond,  was  very  freely 
emulated  by  those  on  board  her  namesake  of  the  Vineyard. 
They  made  their  comparisons,  and  formed  their  conclu 
sions,  with  the  same  deference  to  self-esteem,  and  the  same 
submission  to  hope,  as  had  been  apparent  among  their 
competitors.  It  would  seem  to  be  a  law  of  nature  that 
men  should  thus  flatter  themselves,  and  perceive  the  mote 
in  the  eye  of  their  neighbour,  while  the  beam  in  their  own 
escapes. 

Had  there  been  an  impartial  judge  present,  he  might 
have  differed  from  both  sets  of  critics.  Such  a  person 
would  have  seen  that  one  of  these  schooners  excelled  in 
this  quality,  while  the  other  had  an  equal  advantage  in  an 
other.  In  this  way,  by  running  through  the  list  of  proper 
ties  that  are  desirable  in  a  ship,  he  would,  most  probably, 
have  come  to  the  conclusion  that  there  was  not  much  to 
choose  between  the  two  vessels ;  but,  that  each  had  been 
constructed  with  an  intelligent  regard  to  the  particular 
service  in  which  she  was  about  to  be  employed,  and  both 
were  handled  by  men  who  knew  perfectly  well  how  to  take 
care  of  craft  of  that  description. 

The  wind  gradually  increased  in  strength,  and  sail  was 
shortened  in  the  schooners,  until  each  was  finally  brought 
down  to  a  close-reefed  foresail.  This  would  have  been 
heaving  the  vessels  to,  had  they  not  been  kept  a  little  off, 
in  order  to  force  them  through  the  water.  To  lie-to,  in 
perfection,  some  after-sail  might  have  been  required ;  but 
neither  master  saw  a  necessity,  as  yet,  of  remaining  sta 
tionary.  It  was  thought  better  to  wade  along  some  two 
knots,  than  to  be  pitching  and  lurching  with  nothing  but  a 
drift,  or  leeward  set.  In  this,  both  masters  were  probably 
right,  and  found  their  vessels  farther  to  windward  in  the 
end,  than  if  they  had  endeavoured  to  hold  their  own,  by 
lying-to.  The  great  difficulty  they  had  to  contend  with 


124  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

in  keeping  a  little  off,  was  the  danger  of  seas  coming  on 
board ;  but,  as  yet,  the  ocean  was  not  sufficiently  aroused 
to  make  this  very  hazardous,  and  both  schooners,  having 
no  real  cargoes,  were  light  and  buoyant,  and  floated  dry. 
Had  they  encountered  the  sea  there  was,  with  full  freights 
in  their  holds,  it  might  have  been  imprudent  to  expose 
them  even  to  this  remote  chance  of  having  their  decks 
swept.  Water  comes  aboard  of  small  vessels,  almost  with 
out  an  exception,  in  head  winds  and  seas ;  though  the  con 
trivances  of  modern  naval  architecture  have  provided  de 
fences  that  make  merchant  vessels,  now,  infinitely  more 
comfortable,  in  this  respect,  than  they  were  at  the  period 
of  which  we  are  writing. 

At  the  end  of  three  days,  Roswell  Gardiner  supposed 
himself  to  be  about  the  latitude  of  Cape  Henry,  and  some 
thirty  or  forty  leagues  from  the  land.  It  was  much  easier 
to  compute  the  last,  than  the  first  of  these  material  facts. 
Of  course,  he  had  no  observations.  The  sun  had  not  been 
visible  since  the  storm  commenced,  and  nearly  half  the 
time,  during  the  last  day,  the  two  vessels  were  shut  in  from 
one  another,  by  mists  and  a  small  rain.  It  blew  more  in 
squalls  than  it  had  done,  and  the  relative  positions  of  the 
schooners  were  more  or  less  affected  by  the  circumstance. 
Sometimes,  one  would  be  to  windward,  and  ahead ;  then, 
the  other  would  obtain  a  similar  advantage.  Once  or  twice 
they  seemed  about  to  separate,  the  distance  between  them 
getting  to  be  so  considerable,  as,  apparently,  to  render  it 
impossible  to  keep  in  company;  then  the  craft  would 
change  places,  by  a  slow  process,  passing  quite  near  to 
each  other  again.  No  one  could  tell,  at  the  moment,  pre 
cisely  why  these  variations  occurred ;  though  the  reasons, 
generally,  were  well  understood  by  all  on  board  them. 
Squalls,  careless  steering,  currents,  eddies,  and  all  the  ac 
cidents  of  the  ocean,  contribute  to  create  these  vacillating 
movements,  which  will  often  cause  two  vessels  of  equal 
speed,  and  under  the  same  canvass,  to  seem  to  be  of  very 
different  qualities.  In  the  nights,  the  changes  were  great 
est,  often  placing  the  schooners  leagues  asunder,  and  seem 
ingly  separating  them  altogether.  But,  Roswell  Gardiner 
became  satisfied  that  Captain  Daggett  stuck  by  him  inten 
tionally  ;  for  on  all  such  occasions  if  his  schooner  happened 


THE     SEA    LIONS.  125 

to  be  out  of  the  way,  he  managed  to  close  again,  ere  the 
danger  of  separating  became  too  great  to  be  overcome. 

Our  mariners  judged  of  their  distance  from  the  land,  by 
means  of  the  lead.  If  the  American  coast  is  wanting  in  the 
sublime  and  picturesque,  and  every  traveller  must  admit 
its  defects  in  both,  it  has  the  essential  advantage  of  gra 
duated  soundings.  So  regular  is  the  shoaling  of  the  water, 
and  so  studiously  have  the  fathoms  been  laid  down,  that  a 
cautious  navigator  can  always  feel  his  way  in  to  the  coast, 
and  never  need  place  his  vessel  on  the  beach,  as  is  so  often 
done,  without  at  least  knowing  that  he  was  about  to  do  so. 
Men  become  adventurous  by  often-repeated  success ;  and 
the  struggles  of  competition,  the  go-ahead-ism  of  the  na 
tional  character,  and  the  trouble  it  gives  to  sound  in  deep 
water,  all  contribute  to  cast  away  the  reckless  and  dashing 
navigator,  on  this  as  well  as  on  other  coasts,  and  this  to 
his  own  great  surprise;  but,  whenever  such  a  thing  does 
happen,  unless  in  cases  of  stress  of  weather,  the  reader 
may  rest  assured  it  is  because  those  who  have  had  charge 
of  the  stranded  vessel  have  neglected  to  sound.  The  mile 
stones  on  a  highway  do  not  more  accurately  note  the  dis 
tances,  than  does  the  lead  on  nearly  the  whole  of  the  Ame 
rican  coast.  Thus  Roswell  Gardiner  judged  himself  to  be 
about  thirty-two  or  three  marine  leagues  from  the  land,  on 
the  evening  of  the  third  day  of  that  gale  of  wind.  He 
placed  the  schooner  in  the  latitude  of  Cape  Henry  on  less 
certain  data,  though  that  was  the  latitude  in  which  he  sup 
posed  her  to  be,  by  dead  reckoning. 

"  I  wish  I  knew  where  Daggett  makes  himself  out,"  said 
the  young  master,  just  as  the  day  closed  on  a  most  stormy 
and  dirty-looking  night.  "  I  don't  half  like  the  appearance 
of  the  weather;  but,  I  do  not  wish  to  ware  off  the  land, 
with  that  fellow  ahead  and  nearer  to  the  danger,  if  there 
be  any,  than  we  are  ourselves." 

Here,  Roswell  Gardiner  manifested  a  weakness  that  lies 
at  the  bottom  of  half  our  blunders.  He  did  not  like  to  be 
outdone  by  a  competitor,  even  in  his  mistakes.  If  the  Sea 
Lion  of  Holmes'  Hole  could  hold  on,  on  that  tack,  why 
might  not  the  Sea  Lion  of  Oyster  Pond  do  the  same '?  It 
is  by  this  process  of  human  vanity  that  men  sustain  each 
other  in  wrong,  and  folly  obtains  the  sanction  of  numbers, 


126  THE     SEA    LIONS. 

if  not  that  of  reason.  In  this  practice  we  see  one  of  the 
causes  of  the  masses  becoming  misled,  and  this  seldom 
happens  vvithont  their  becoming  oppressive. 

Roswell  Gardiner,  however,  did  not  neglect  the  lead. 
The  schooner  had  merely  to  luff  close  to  the  wind,  and 
they  were  in  a  proper  state  to  sound.  This  they  did  twice, 
during  that  night,  and  with  a  very  sensible  diminution  in 
the  depth  of  the  water.  It  was  evident  that  the  schooner 
was  getting  pretty  close  in  on  the  coast,  the  wind  coming 
out  nearly  at  south,  in  squalls.  Her  commander  held  on, 
for  he  thought  there  were  indications  of  a  change,  and  he 
still  did  riot  like  to  ware  so  long  as  his  rival  of  the  Vine 
yard  kept  on  the  larboard  tack.  In  this  way,  each  en 
couraging  the  other  in  recklessness,  did  these  two  craft 
run  nearly  into  the  lion's  jaw,  as  it  might  be  ;  for,  when 
the  day  re-appeared,  the  wind  veered  round  to  the  east 
ward,  a  little  northerly,  bringing  the  craft  directly  on  a  lee- 
shore,  blowing  at  the  time  so  heavily  as  to  render  a  foresail 
reefed  down  to  a  mere  rag,  more  canvass  than  the  little 
vessels  could  well  bear.  As  the  day  returned,  and  the 
drizzle  cleared  off  a  little,  land  was  seen  to  leeward,  stretch 
ing  slightly  to  seaward,  both  ahead  and  astern  *  On  con 
sulting  his  charts,  and  after  getting  a  pretty  good  look  at 
the  coast  from  aloft,  Roswell  Gardiner  became  satisfied 
that  he  was  off  Currituck,  which  placed  him  near  six  de 
grees  to  the  southward  of  his  port  of  departure,  and  about 
four  to  the  westward.  Our  young  man  now  deeply  felt 
that  a  foolish  rivalry  had  led  him  into  an  error,  and  he  re 
gretted  that  he  had  not  wore  the  previous  evening,  when 
he  might  have  had  an  offing  that  would  have  enabled  him 
to  stand  in  either  direction,  clearing  the  land.  As  things 
were,  he  was  not  by  any  means  certain  of  the  course  he 
ought  to  pursue. 

Little  did  Gardiner  imagine  that  the  reason  why  Dag- 
gett  had  thus  stood  on,  was  so  ely  the  wish  to  keep  him 
company ;  for,  that  person,  in  consequence  of  Gardiner's 
running  so  close  in  towards  the  coast,  had  taken  up  the 
notion  that  the  Sea  Lion  of  Oyster  Pond  meant  to  pass 
through  the  West  Indies,  visiting  the  key,  which  was 
thought  to  contain  treasure,  and  of  which  he  had  some  ao 
counts  that  had  aroused  all  his  thirst  for  gold,  without  giv- 


THE    SEA    J.IONS.  127 

ing  him  the  clue  necessary  to  obtain  it.  Thus  it  was  that 
a  mistaken  watchfulness  on  one  side,  and  a  mistaken  pride 
on  the  other,  had  brought  these  two  vessels  into  as  danger 
ous  a  position  as  could  have  been  obtained  for  them  by  a 
direct  attempt  to  place  them  in  extreme  jeopardy. 

About  ten,  the  gale  was  at  its  height,  the  wind  still 
hanging  at  east,  a  little  northerly.  In  the  course  of  the 
morning,  the  officers  on  board  both  schooners,  profiting  by 
lulls  and  clear  moments,  had  got  so  many  views  of  the  land 
from  aloft,  as  to  be  fully  aware  of  their  respective  situa 
tions.  All  thoughts  of  competition  and  watchfulness  had 
now  vanished.  Each  vessel  was  managed  with  a  reference 
solely  to  her  safety;  and,  as  might  have  been  foreseen 
when  true  seamen  handled  both,  they  had  recourse  to  the 
same  expedients  to  save  themselves.  The  mainsails  of 
both  crafts  were  set,  balance-reefed,  and  the  hulls  were 
pressed  up  against  the  wind  and  sea,  while  they  were 
driven  ahead  with  increased  momentum. 

"  That  main-mast  springs  like  a  whale-bone  whip-handle, 
sir,"  said  Hazard,  when  this  new  experiment  had  been 
tried  some  ten  minutes  or  more.  "  She  jumps  from  one 
sea  to  another,  like  a  frog  in  a  hurry  to  hop  into  a  puddle  !" 

"  She  must  stand  it,  or  go  ashore,"  answered  Gardiner, 
coolly,  though  in  secret  he  was  deeply  concerned.  "  Did 
Deacon  Pratt  forgive  me,  should  we  lose  the  schooner,  I 
never  could  forgive  myself!" 

"  Should  we  lose  the  schooner,  Captain  Gar'ner,  few  of 
us  would  escape  drowning,  to  feel  remorse  or  joy.  Look 
at  that  coast,  sir  —  it  is  clear  now,  and  a  body  can  see  a 
good  bit  of  it — never  did  I  put  eyes  upon  a  less  promising 
land-fall,  for  strangers  to  make." 

Roswell  Gardiner  did  look,  as  desired,  and  he  fully 
agreed  with  Hazard  in  opinion.  Ahead,  and  astern,  the 
land  trended  to  seaward,  placing  the  schooners  in  a  curve 
of  the  coast,  or  what  seamen  term  a  bight,  rendering  it 
quite  impossible  for  the  vessels  to  lay  out  past  either  of  the 
head-lands  in  sight.  The  whole  coast  was  low,  and  endless 
lines  of  breakers  were  visible  along  it,  flashing  up  with 
luminous  crests  that  left  no  doubt  of  their  character,  or  of 
the  dangers  that  they  so  plainly  denoted.  At  times,  co 
lumns  of  water  shot  up  into  the  air  like  enormous  jets, 


128  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

and  the  spray  was  carried  inland  for  miles.  Then  it  was 
that  gloom  gathered  around  the  brows  of  the  seamen,  who 
fully  comprehended  the  nature  of  the  danger  that  was  so 
plainly  indicated.  The  green  hands  were  the  least  con 
cerned,  "  knowing  nothing  and  fearing  nothing,"  as  the 
older  seamen  are  apt  to  express  their  sense  of  this  indiffer 
ence  on  the  part  of  the  boys  and  landsmen. 

According  to  the  calculations  of  those  on  board  the  Sea 
Lion,  of  Oyster  Pond,  they  had  about  two  miles  of  drift 
before  they  should  be  in  the  breakers.  They  were  on  the 
best  tack,  to  all  appearances,  and  that  was  the  old  one,  or 
the  same  leg  that  had  carried  them  into  the  bight.  To 
ware  now,  indeed,  would  be  a  very  hazardous  step,  since 
every  inch  of  room  was  of  importance.  Gardiner's  secret 
hope  was  that  they  might  find  the  inlet  that  led  into  Curri- 
tuck,  which  was  then  open,  though  we  believe  it  has  since 
been  closed,  in  whole  or  in  part,  by  the  sands.  This  often 
happens  on  the  American  coast,  very  tolerable  passages 
existing  this  year  for  vessels  of  an  easy  draught,  that  shall 
be  absolutely  shut  up,  and  be  converted  into  visible  beach, 
a  few  years  later.  The  waters  within  will  then  gain  head, 
and  break  out,  cutting  themselves  a  channel,  that  remains 
open  until  a  succession  of  gales  drives  in  the  sands  upon 
them  from  the  outside  once  more. 

Gardiner  well  knew  he  was  on  the  most  dangerous  part 
of  the  whole  American  coast,  in  one  sense,  at  least.  The 
capacious  sounds  that  spread  themselves  within  the  long 
beaches  of  sand  were  almost  as  difficult  of  navigation  as 
any  shoals  to  the  northward;  yet  would  he  gladly  have 
been  in  one  in  preference  to  clawing  off  breakers  on  their 
outside.  As  between  the  two  schooners,  the  Vineyard-men 
had  rather  the  best  of  it,  being  near  a  cable's  length  to 
windward,  and  so  much  further  removed  from  destruction. 
The  difference,  however,  was  of  no  great  account  in  the 
event  of  the  gale  continuing,  escape  being  utterly  impossi 
ble  for  either  in  that  case.  So  critical  was  the  situation 
of  both  craft  becoming,  indeed,  that  neither  could  now 
aiFord  to  yield  a  single  fathom  of  the  ground  she  held. 

All  eyes  were  soon  looking  for  the  inlet,  it  having  been 
determined  to  keep  the  Sea  Lion,  of  Oyster  Pond,  away 
for  it,  should  it  appear  to  leeward,  under  circumstances 


THE     SEA     LIONS.  129 

that  would  allow  of  her  reaching  it.  The  line  of  breakers 
was  now  very  distinctly  visible,  and  each  minute  did  it  not 
only  appear  to  be,  but  it  was  in  fact  nearer  and  nearer. 
Anchors  were  cleared  away,  and  ranges  of  cable  over 
hauled,  anchoring  being  an  expedient  that  a  seaman  felt 
bound  to  resort  to,  previously  to  going  ashore,  though  it 
would  be  with  very  little  hope  of  ground-tackles  holding. 

The  schooner  had  been  described  by  Hazard  as  'jump 
ing'  into  the  sea.  This  expression  is  not  a  bad  one,  as 
applied  to  small  vessels  in  short  seas,  and  it  was  particu 
larly  apt  on  this  occasion.  Although  constructed  with  great 
care  forward  as  to  buoyancy,  this  vessel  made  plunges  into 
the  waves  she  met  that  irearly  buried  her ;  and,  once  or 
twice,  the  shocks  were  so  great,  that  those  on  board  her 
could  with  difficulty  persuade  themselves  they  had  not 
struck  the  bottom.  The  lead,  nevertheless,  still  gave  water 
sufficient,  though  it  was  shoaling  fast,  and  with  a  most 
ominous  regularity.  Such  was  the  actual  state  of  things 
when  the  schooner  made  one  of  her  mad  plunges,  and  was 
met  by  a  force  that  seemed  to  check  her  forward  move 
ment  as  effectually  as  if  slie  had  hit  a  rock.  The  main 
mast  was  a  good  spar  in  some  respects,  but  it  wanted  wood. 
An  inch  or  two  more  in  diameter  might  have  saved  it;  but 
the  deacon  had  been  induced  to  buy  it  to  save  his  money, 
though  remonstrated  with  at  the  time.  This  spar  now 
snapped  in  two,  a  few  feet  from  the  deck,  and  falling  to 
leeward,  it  dragged  after  it  the  head  of  the  foremast,  leaving 
the  Sea  Lion,  of  Oyster  Pond,  actually  in  a  worse  situation, 
just  at  that  moment,  than  if  she  had  no  spars  at  all. 

Roswell  Gardiner  now  appeared  in  a  new  character. 
Hitherto  he  had  been  silent,  but  observant;  issuing  his 
orders  in  a  way  not  to  excite  the  men,  and  with  an  air  of  un 
concern  that  really  had  the  effect  to  mislead  most  of  them 
on  the  subject  of  his  estimate  of  the  danger  they  were  in. 
Concealment,  however,  was  no  longer  possible,  and  our 
young  master  came  out  as  active  as  circumstances  required, 
foremost  in  every  exertion,  and  issuing  his  orders  amid  the 
gale  trumpet-tongued.  His  manner,  so  full  of  animation, 
resolution  and  exertion,  probably  prevented  despair  from 
getting  the  ascendancy  at  that  important  moment.  He  was 
nobly  sustained  by  both  his  mates;  and  three  or  four  of  the 


130  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

older  seamen  now  showed  themselves  men  to  be  relied  ofl 
to  the  last. 

The  first  step  was  to  anchor.  Fortunately,  the  foresight 
of  Gardiner  had  everything  ready  for  this  indispensable 
precaution.  Without  anchoring,  ten  minutes  would  pro 
bably  have  carried  the  schooner  directly  down  upon  the 
breakers,  leaving  no  hope  for  the  life  of  any  on  board  her, 
and  breaking  her  up  into  chips.  Both  bowers  were  let  go 
at  once,  and  long  ranges  of  cable  given.  The  schooner  was 
snubbed  without  parting  anything,  and  was  immediately 
brought  head  to  sea.  This  relieved  her  at  once,  and  there 
was  a  moment  that  her  people  fancied  she  might  ride  out 
the  gale  where  she  was,  coald  they  only  get  clear  of  the 
wreck.  Axes,  hatchets,  and  knives  were  freely  used,  and 
Roswell  Gardiner  saw  the  mass  of  spars  and  rigging  float 
clear  of  him  with  a  delight  he  did  not  desire  to  conceal. 
As  it  drove  to  leeward,  he  actually  cheered.  A  lead  was 
instantly  dropped  alongside,  in  order  to  ascertain  whether 
the  anchors  held.  This  infallible  test,  however,  gave  the 
melancholy  certainty  that  the  schooner  was  still  drifting 
her  length  in  rather  less  than  two  minutes. 

The  only  hope  now  was  that  the  flukes  of  the  anchors 
might  catch  in  better  holding  ground  than  they  had  yet 
met  with.  The  bottom  was  hard  sand,  however,  which 
never  gives  a  craft  the  chance  that  it  gets  from  mud.  By 
Roswell  Gardiner's  calculations,  an  hour,  at  the  most, 
would  carry  them  into  the  breakers;  possibly  less  time. 
The  Sea  Lion,  of,Holmes'  Hole,  was  to  windward  a  cable's 
length  when  this  accident  happened  to  her  consort,  and 
about  half  a  mile  to  the  southward.  Just  at  that  instant 
the  breakers  trended  seaward,  ahead  of  that  schooner,  ren 
dering  it  indispensable  for  her  to  ware.  This  was  done 
bringing  her  head  to  the  southward,  and  she  now  cam? 
struggling  directly  on  towards  her  consort.  The  operation 
of  waring  had  caused  her  to  lose  ground  enough  to  bring 
her  to  leeward  of  the  anchored  craft,  and  nearer  to  the 
danger. 

Roswell  Gardiner  stood  on  his  own  quarter-deck,  anxious 
ly  watching  the  drift  of  the  other  schooner,  as  she  drev 
near  in  her  laboured  way,  struggling  ahead  through  bil 
lows  that  were  almost  as  white  as  the  breakers  that  menaced 


THE    SEA    LIONS.  131 

them  with  destruclon  to  leeward.  The  anchored  vessel, 
though  drifting,  had  so  slow  a  movement  that  it  served  to 
mark  the  steady  and  rapid  set  of  its  consort  towards  its 
certain  fate.  At  first,  it  seemed  to  Gardiner  that  Daggett 
would  pass  just  ahead  of  him,  and  he  trembled  for  his 
cables,  which  occasionally  appeared  above  water,  stretched 
like  bars  of  iron,  for  the  distance  of  thirty  or  forty  fathoms. 
But,  the  leeward  set  of  the  vessel  under  way  was  too  fast 
to  give  her  any  chance  of  bringing  this  new  danger  on  her 
consort.  When  a  cable's  length  distant,  the  Sea  Lion,  of 
the  Vineyard,  did  seem  as  if  she  might  weather  her  con 
sort  ;  but,  ere  that  short  space  was  passed  over,  it  was  found 
that  she  fell  off  so  fast,  by  means  of  her  drift,  as  to  carry 
her  fairly  clear  of  her  stern.  The  two  masters,  holding  with 
one  hand  to  some  permanent  object  by  which  to  steady 
themselves,  and  each  pressing  his  tarpaulin  firmly  down  on 
his  head  with  the  other,  had  a  minute's  conversation  when 
the  schooners  were  nearest  together. 

"  Do  your  anchors  hold  ?"  demanded  Daggett,  who  wa3 
the  first  to  speak,  and  who  put  his  question  as  if  he  thought 
his  own  fate  depended  on  the  answer. 

"I'm  sorry  to  say  they  do  not.  We  drift  our  length  in 
about  two  minutes." 

"  That  will  put  off  the  evil  moment  an  hour  or  two. 
Look  what  a  wake  we  are  making !" 

Sure  enough,  that  wake  was  frightful !  No  sooner  was 
the  head  of  the  Sea  Lion,  of  the  Vineyard,  fairly  up  with 
the  stern  of  the  Sea  Lion,  of  Oyster  Pond,  than  Gardiner 
perceived  that  she  went  off  diagonally,  moving  quite  as  fast 
to  leeward  as  she  went  ahead.  This  was  so  very  obvious 
that  a  line  drawn  from  the  quarter  of  Roswell's  craft,  in  a 
quartering  direction,  would  almost  have  kept  the  other 
schooner  in  its  range  from  the  moment  that  her  bow  hove 
heavily  past. 

"  God  bless  you  ! — God  bless  you  !"  cried  Roswell  Gar 
diner,  waving  his  hand  in  adieu,  firmly  persuaded  that  he 
and  the  Vineyard  master  were  never  to  meet  again  in  this 
world.  "The  survivors  must  let  the  fate  of  the  lost  be 
known.  At  the  pinch,  I  shall  out  boats,  if  I  can." 

The  other  made  no  answer.  It  would  have  been  useless, 
indeed,  to  attempt  it ;  since  no  human  voice  had  power  to 
12 


132  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

force  itself  up  against  such  a  gale,  the  distance  that  had 
now  to  be  overcome. 

""That  schooner  will  be  in  the  breakers  in  half  an  hour/1 
said  Hazard,  who  stood  by  the  side  of  young  Gardiner. 
"  Why  don't  he  anchor !  No  power  short  of  Divine  Provi 
dence  can  save  her." 

"And  Divine  Providence  will  do  it — thanks  to  Almighty 
God  for  his  goodness !"  exclaimed  Roswell  Gardiner.  "  Did 
you  perceive  that,  Mr.  Hazard!" 

The  '  that '  of  our  young  mariner  was,  in  truth,  a  most 
momentous  omen.  The  wind  had  lulled  so  suddenly  that 
the  rags  of  sails  which  the  other  schooner  carried  actually 
flapped.  At  first  our  seamen  thought  she  had  been  be 
calmed  by  the  swell;  but  the  change  about  themselves  was 
too  obvious  to  admit  of  any  mistake.  It  blew  terribly,  again, 
for  a  minute ;  then  there  was  another  lull.  Gardiner  sprang 
to  the  lead-line  to  see  the  effect  on  his  own  vessel.  She  no 
longer  dragged  her  anchor  ! 

"  God  is  with  us  !"  exclaimed  the  young  master — "  bless 
ed  for  ever  be  his  holy  name." 

"And  that  of  his  only  and  true  Son,"  responded  a  voice 
from  one  at  his  elbow. 

Notwithstanding  the  emergency,  and  the  excitement 
produced  by  this  sudden  change,  Roswell  Gardiner  turned 
to  see  from  whom  this  admonition  had  come.  The  oldest 
seaman  on  board,  who  was  Stimson,  a  Kennebunk  man, 
and  who  had  been  placed  there  to  watch  the  schooner's 
drift,  had  uttered  these  unusual  words.  The  fervour  with 
which  he  spoke  produced  more  impression  on  the  young 
master  than  the  words  themselves ;  the  former  being  very 
unusual  among  sea-faring  men,  though  the  language  was 
not  so  much  so.  Subsequently,  Gardiner  remembered  that 
little  incident,  which  was  not  without  its  results. 

"  I  do  believe,  sir,"  cried  Hazard,  "  that  the  gale  is 
broken.  Ijt  often  happens,  on  our  own  coast,  that  the  southe 
casters  chop  round  suddenly,  and  come  out  nor'-westers. 
I  hope  this  will  not  be  too  late  to  save  the  Vineyard  chap, 
though  he  slips  down  upon  them  breakers  at  a  most  fearful 
rate." 

"  There  goes  his  foresail,  again — and  here  is  another 
lull!"  rejoined  Gardiner.  "I  tell  you,  Mr.  Hazard,  we 


THE    SEA    LIONS.  133 

shal  have  a  shift  of  wind — nothing  short  of  which  could 
save  either  of  us  from  these  breakers." 

"  Which  comes  from  the  marcy  of  God  Almighty,  through 
the  intercession  of  his  only  Son !"  added  Stimson,  with 
the  same  fervour  of  manner,  though  he  spoke  in  a  very  low 
tone  of  voice. 

Roswell  Gardiner  was  again  surprised,  and  for  another 
moment  he  forgot  the  gale  and  its  dangers.  Gale  it  was 
no  longer,  however,  for  the  lull  was  now  decided,  and  the 
two  cables  of  the  schooner  were  distended  only  when  the 
roll  of  the  seas  came  in  upon  her.  This  wash  of  the  waves 
still  menaced  the  other  schooner,  driving  her  down  towards 
the  breakers,  though  less  rapidly  than  before. 

"  Why  don't  the  fellow  anchor !"  exclaimed  Gardiner, 
in  his  anxiety,  all  care  for  himself  being  now  over.  "  Un 
less  he  anchor,  he  will  yet  go  into  the  white  water,  and  be 
lost !" 

"  So  little  does  he  think  of  that,  that  he  is  turning  out 
his  reefs,"  answered  Hazard.  "  See !  there  is  a  hand  aloft 
loosening  his  topsail — and  there  goes  up  a  whole  mainsail, 
already !" 

Sure  enough,  Daggett  appeared  more  disposed  to  trust 
to  his  canvass,  than  to  his  ground-tackle.  In  a  very  brief 
space  of  time  he  had  his  craft  under  whole  sail,  and  was 
struggling,  in  the  puffs,  to  claw  off  the  land.  Presently, 
the  wind  ceased  altogether,  the  canvass  flapping  so  as  to  be 
audible  to  Gardiner  and  his  companions,  at  the  distance 
of  half  a  mile.  Then,  the  cloth  was  distended  in  the  op 
posite  direction,  and  the  wind  came  off  the  land.  The 
schooner's  head  was  instantly  brought  to  meet  the  seas, 
and  the  lead  dropped  at  her  side  showed  that  she  was  mov 
ing  in  the  right  direction.  These  sudden  changes,  some 
times  destructive,  and  sometimes  providential  as  acts  of 
mercy,  always  bring  strong  counter-currents  of  air  in  their 
train. 

"  Now  we  shall  have  it !"  said  Hazard — "  a  true  nor'- 
wester,  and  butt-end  foremost !" 

This  opinion  very  accurately  described  that  which  fol 
lowed.  In  ten  minutes  it  was  blowing  heavily,  in  a  direc 
tion  nearly  opposite  to  that  which  had  been  the  previous 
current  of  the  wind.  As  a  matter  of  course,  the  Sea  Lion 


134  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

of  the  Vineyard  drew  off  the  land,  wallowing  through  the 
meeting  billows  that  still  came  rolling  in  from  the  broad 
Atlantic ;  while  the  Sea  Lion  of  Oyster  Pond  tended  to 
the  new  currents  of  air,  and  rode,  as  it  might  be,  suspended 
between  the  two  opposing  forces,  with  little  or  no  strain 
on  her  cables.  Gardiner  expected  to  see  his  consort  stand 
out  to  sea,  and  gain  an  offing ;  but,  instead  of  this,  Captain 
Daggett  brought  his  schooner  quite  near  to  the  disabled 
vessel,  and  anchored.  This  act  of  neighbourly  kindness 
was  too  unequivocal  to  require  explanation.  It  was  the 
intention  of  the  Vineyard  men  to  lie  by  their  consort  until 
she  was  relieved  from  all  apprehensions  of  danger.  The 
*  butt-end'  of  the  '  nor'-wester'  was  too  large  to  admit  of 
intercourse  until  next  morning,  when  that  which  had  been 
a  small  gale  had  dwindled  to  a  good  steady  breeze,  and 
the  seas  had  gone  down,  leaving  comparatively  smooth 
water  all  along  the  coast.  The  line  of  white  water  which 
marked  the  breakers  was  there,  and  quite  visible ;  but  it 
no  longer  excited  apprehension.  The  jury-masts  on  board 
the  disabled  craft  were  got  up,  and  what  was  very  conve 
nient,  just  at  that  moment,  the  wreck  came  floating  out  on 
the  ebb,  so  near  to  her  as  to  enable  the  boats  to  secure  all 
the  sails  and  most  of  the  rigging.  The  main-boom,  too, 
an  excellent  spar,  was  towed  alongside  and  saved. 


CHAPTER  X. 

**  The  shadow  from  thy  brow  shall  melt, 

The  sorrow  from  thy  strain ; 
But  where  thy  earthly  smile  hath  dwelt, 
Our  hearts  shall  thirst  in  vain.*' 

MRS.  HEMAJTS. 

As  soon  as  it  would  do  to  put  his  boats  in  the  water,  or 
at  daylight  next  morning,  Captain  Daggett  came  alongside 
of  his  consort.  He  was  received  with  a  seaman's  welcome, 
and  his  offers  of  services  were  accepted,  just  as  frankly,  as 
under  reversed  circumstances,  they  would  have  been  made 


THE     SEA     LIONS.  135 

In  all  this  there  was  a  strange  and  characteristic  admixture 
of  neighbourly  and  Christian  kindness,  blended  with  a  keen 
regard  of  the  main  chance.  If  the  former  duties  are  rarely 
neglected  by  the  descendants  of  the  Puritans,  it  may  be 
said,  with  equal  truth,  that  the  latter  are  never  lost  sight 
of.  Speculation,  and  profit,  are  regarded  as  so  many  inte 
gral  portions  of  the  duty  of  man;  and,  as  our  kinsmen  of 
Old  England  have  set  up  an  idol  to  worship,  in  the  form 
of  aristocracy,  so  do  our  kinsmen  of  New  England  pay 
homage  to  the  golden  calf.  In  point  of  fact,  Daggett  had 
a  double  motive  in  now  offering  his  services  to  Gardiner ; 
the  one  being  the  discharge  of  his  moral  obligations,  and 
the  other  a  desire  to  remain  near  the  Sea  Lion  of  Oyster 
Pond,  lest  she  should  visit  the  key,  of  which  he  had  some 
very  interesting  memorandums,  without  having  enough  to 
find  the  place  unless  led  there  by  those  who  were  better 
informed  on  the  subject  of  its  precise  locality  than  he  was 
himself. 

The  boats  of  Daggett  assisted  in  getting  the  wreck 
alongside,  and  in  securing  the  sails  and  rigging.  Then, 
his  people  aided  in  fitting  jury-masts ;  and,  by  noon,  both 
vessels  got  under  way,  and  stood  along  the  coast,  to  the 
southward  and  westward.  Hatteras  was  no  longer  terrible, 
for  the  wind  still  stood  at  north-west,  and  they  kept  in  view 
of  those  very  breakers  which,  only  the  day  before,  they 
would  have  given  the  value  of  both  vessels  to  be  certain  of 
never  seeing  again.  That  night  they  passed  the  formidable 
cape,  a  spit  of  sand  projecting  far  to  seaward,  and  which 
is  on  a  low  beach,  and  not  on  any  main  land  at  all.  Once 
around  this  angle  in  the  coast,  they  had  a  lee,  hauling  up 
to  the  south-west.  With  the  wind  abeam,  they  stood  on 
the  rest  of  the  day,  picking  up  a  pilot.  The  next  night 
they  doubled  Cape  Look  Out,  a  very  good  landmark  for 
those  going  north  to  keep  in  view,  as  a  reminder  of  tlie 
stormy  and  sunken  Hatteras,  and  arrived  off  Beaufort  har 
bour  just  as  the  sun  was  rising,  the  succeeding  morning. 
By  this  time  the  north-wester  was  done,  and  both  schooners 
entered  Beaufort,  with  a  light  southerly  breeze,  there  being 
just  water  enough  to  receive  them.  This  was  the  only 
place  on  all  that  coast  into  which  it  would  have  answered 
their  purposes  to  go ;  and  it  was,  perhaps,  the  very  port  of 
12* 


136  THE    SEA    LIONS, 

all  others  that  was  best  suited  to  supply  the  present  wants 
of  Roswell  Gardiner.  Pine  timber,  and  spars  of  all  sorts, 
abounded  in  that  region;  and  the  "  Banker,"  who  acted  as 
pilot,  told  our  young  master  that  he  could  get  the  very 
sticks  he  needed,  in  one  hour's  time  after  entering  the  ha 
ven.  This  term  of  "  Banker"  applies  to  a  scattering  popu 
lation  of  wreckers  and  fishermen,  who  dwell  on  the  long, 
low,  narrow  beaches  which  extend  along  the  whole  of  this 
part  of  the  coast,  reaching  from  Cape  Fear  to  near  Cape 
Henry,  a  distance  of  some  hundred  and  fifty  miles.  Within 
lie  the  capacious  sounds  already  mentioned,  including  Al- 
bemarle  and  Pimlico,  and  which  form  the  watery  portals 
to  the  sea-shores  of  all  North  Carolina.  Well  is  the  last 
headland  of  that  region,  but  one  which  the  schooners  did 
not  double,  named  Cape  Fear.  It  is  the  commencement, 
on  that  side,  of  the  dangerous  part  of  the  coast,  and  puts 
the  mariner  on  his  guard  by  its  very  appellation,  admonish 
ing  him  to  be  cautious  and  prudent. 

Off  the  entrance  of  Beaufort,  a  very  perfect  and  beauti 
ful  haven,  if  it  had  a  greater  depth  of  water,  the  schooners 
hove-to,  in  waiting  for  the  tide  to  rise  a  little;  and  Ros 
well  Gardiner  took  that  occasion  to  go  on  board  the  sister 
craft,  and  express  to  Daggett  a  sense  of  the  obligations  he 
felt  for  the  services  the  other  had  rendered. 

"  Of  course,  you  will  not  think  of  going  in,  Captain 
Daggett,"  continued  our  hero,  in  dwelling  on  the  subject, 
"  after  having  put  yourself,  already,  to  so  much  unneces 
sary  trouble.  If  I  find  the  spars  the  Banker  talks  of,  I 
shall  be  out  again  in  eight-and-forty  hours,  and  we  may 
meet,  some  months  hence,  off  Cape  Horn." 

"I'll  tell  you  what  it  is,  Gar'ner,"  returned  the  Vine 
yard  mariner,  pushing  the  rum  towards  his  brother  master, 
"I'm  a  plain  sort  of  a  fellow,  and  don't  make  much  talk 
when  I  do  a  thing,  but  I  like  good-fellowship.  We  came 
near  going,  both  of  us — nearer  than  I  ever  was  before,  and 
escape  wrackin' ;  but  escape  we  did — and  when  men  have 
gone  through  such  trials  in  company,  I  don't  like  the  no 
tion  of  casting  off  till  I  see  you  all  a-tanto  ag'in,  and  with 
as  many  legs  and  arms  as  I  carry  myself.  That's  just  my 
feelin',  Gar'ner,  and  I  won't  say  whether  it's  a  right  feelin' 
or  not — help  yourself!" 


THE    SEA    LIONS.  137 

"  It 's  a  fight  feeling,  as  between  you  and  me,  Captain 
Daggett,  as  I  can  answer  for.  My  heart  tells  me  you  are 
right,  and  I  thank  you  from  it,  for  these  marks  of  friend 
ship.  But,  you  must  not  forget  there  are  such  persons  as 
owners,  in  this  world.  I  shall  have  trouble  enough  on  my 
hands,  with  my  owner,  and  I  do  not  wish  you  to  have 
trouble  with  yours.  Here  is  a  nice  little  breeze  to  take 
you  out  to  sea  again ;  and  by  passing  to  the  southward  of 
Bermuda,  you  can  make  a  short  cut,  and  hit  the  trades  far 
enough  to  windward  to  answer  all  your  purposes." 

"Thankee,  thankee,  Gar'ner — I  know  the  road,  and 
can  find  the  places  1  'm  going  to,  though  no  great  naviga 
tor.  Now,  I  never  took  a  lunar  in  my  life,  and  can't  do 
anything  with  a  chronometer ;  but  as  for  finding  the  way 
between  Martha's  Vineyard  and  Cape  Horn,  I  '11  turn  my 
back  on  no  shipmaster  living." 

"  I'm  afraid,  Captain  Daggett,  that  we  have  both  of  us 
turned  our  backs  on  our  true  course,  when  we  suifered 
ourselves  to  get  jammed  away  down  here,  on  Hatteras. 
Why,  I  never  saw  the  place  before,  and  never  wish  to  see 
it  again !  It 's  as  much  out  of  the  track  of  a  whaler,  or 
sealer,  as  Jupiter  is  out  of  the  track  of  Mars,  or  Venus." 

"  Oh,  there  go  your  lunars,  about  which  I  know  nothing, 
and  care  nothing.  I  tell  you,  Gar'ner,  a  man  with  a  good 
judgment,  can  just  as  well  jog  about  the  Jarth,  without  any 
acquaintance  with  lunars.  as  he  can  with.  Then,  your 
sealer  hasn't  half  as  much  need  of  your  academy-sort  of 
navigation,  as  another  man.  More  than  half  of  our  calling 
is  luck ;  and  all  the  best  sealing  stations  I  ever  heard  of, 
have  been  blundered  on  by  some  chap  who  has  lost  his  way. 
I  despise  lunars,  if  the  truth  must  be  said ;  yet  I  like  to  go 
straight  to  my  port  of  destination.  Take  a  little  sugar 
with  your  rum-and-water — we  Vineyard  folks  like  sweet- 


"  For  which  purpose,  or  that  of  going  straight  to  your 
port,  Captain  Daggett,  you've  come  down  here,  on  your 
way  to  the  Pacific;  or,  about  five  hundred  miles  out  of 


your  way  '' 


"  I  came  here  for  company,  Gar'ner.  We  hadn't  much 
choice,  you  must  allow,  for  we  couldn't  have  weathered 
the  shoals  on  the  other  tack.  I  see  no  great  harm  in  oui 


138  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

positions,  if  you  hadn't  got  dismasted.  That's  a  two  of 
three  hundred  dollar  job,  and  may  make  your  owner  grum 
ble  a  little,  but  it 's  no  killing  matter.  I  '11  stick  by  you, 
and  you  can  tell  the  deacon  as  much  in  the  letter  you  '11 
write  him,  when  we  get  in." 

"  It  seems  like  doing  injustice  to  your  owners,  as  well 
as  to  my  own,  keeping  you  here,  Captain  Daggett,"  re 
turned  Roswell,  innocently,  for  he  had  not  the  .smallest 
suspicion  of  the  true  motive  of  all  this  apparent  good-fel 
lowship,  "  and  I  really  wish  you  would  now  quit  me." 

"  I  couldn't  think  of  it,  Gar'ner.  'T  would  make  an 
awful  talk  on  the  Vineyard,  was  I  to  do  anything  of  the 
sort.  '  Stick  by  your  consort,'  is  an  eleventh  command 
ment,  in  our  island." 

"  Which  is  the  reason  why  there  are  so  many  old  maids 
there,  I  suppose,  Daggett,"  cried  Roswell  Gardiner,  laugh 
ing.  "  Well,  I  thank  you  for  your  kindness,  and  will  en 
deavour  to  remember  it  when  you  may  have  occasion  for 
some  return.  But,  the  tide  must  be  making,  and  we  ought 
to  lose  no  time,  unnecessarily.  Here's  a  lucky  voyage  to 
us  both,  Captain  Daggett,  and  a  happy  return  to  sweet 
hearts  and  wives." 

Daggett  tossed  off  his  glass  to  this  toast,  and  the  two  then 
went  on  deck.  Roswell  Gardiner  thought  that  a  kinder 
ship's  company  never  sailed  together  than  this  of  the  Sea 
Lion  of  Holmes'  Hole ;  for,  notwithstanding  the  interest 
of  every  man  on  board  depended  on  the  returns  of  their 
own  voyage,  each  and  all  appeared  willing  to  stick  by  him 
and  his  craft  so  long  as  there  was  a  possibility  of  being  of 
any  service. 

Whalers  and  sealers  do  not  ship  their  crews  for  wages  in 
money,  as  is  done  with  most  vessels.  So  much  depends  on 
the  exertions  of  the  people  in  these  voyages,  that  it  is  the 
practice  to  give  every  man  a  direct  interest  in  the  result. 
Consequently,  all  on  board  engage  for  a  compensation  to 
be  derived  from  a  division  of  the  return  cargo.  The  terms 
on  which  a  party  engages  are  called  his  "lay;"  and  he  gets 
so  many  parts  of  a  hundred,  according  to  station,  expe 
rience  and  qualifications.  The  owner  is  paid  for  his  risk 
and  expenses  in  the  same  way,  the  vessel  and  outfits  usually 
taking  about  two-thirds  of  the  whole  return*,  while  the 


THE    SEA     LIONS.  139 

officers  and  crew  get  the  other.  These  conditions  vary  a 
little,  as  the  proceeds  of  whaling  and  sealing  rise  or  fall  in 
the  market,  and  also  in  reference  to  the  cost  of  equipments. 
It  follows  that  Captain  Daggett  and  his  crew  were  actually 
putting  their  hands  into  their  own  pockets,  when  they  lost 
time  in  remaining  with  the  crippled  craft.  This  Gardiner 
knew,  and  it  caused  him  to  appreciate  their  kindness  at  a 
rate  so  much  higher  than  he  might  otherwise  have  done. 

At  first  sight,  it  might  seem  that  all  this  unusual  kind 
ness  was  superfluous,  and  of  no  avail.  This,  however,  was 
not  really  the  case,  since  the  crew  of  the  second  schooner 
was  of  much  real  service  in  forwarding  the  equipment  of 
the  disabled  vessel.  Beaufort  has  an  excellent  harbour  for 
vessels  of  a  light  draught  of  water  like  our  two  sealers;  but 
the  town  is  insignificant,  and  extra  labourers,  especially 
those  of  an  intelligence  suited  to  such  work,  very  difficult 
to  be  had.  At  the  bottom,  therefore,  Rosvvell  Gardiner 
found  his  friendly  assistants  of  much  real  advantage,  the 
two  crews  pushing  the  work  before  them  with  as  much 
rapidity  as  suited  even  a  seaman's  impatience.  Aided  by 
the  crew  of  his  consort,  Gardiner  got  on  fast  with  his  re 
pairs,  and  on  the  afternoon  of  the  second  day  after  he  had 
entered  Beaufort,  he  was  ready  to  sail  once  more;  his 
schooner  probably  in  a  better  state  for  service  than  the  day 
she  left  Oyster  Pond. 

The  lightning-line  did  not  exist  at  the  period  of  which 
we  are  writing.  It  is  our  good  fortune  to  be  an  intimate 
acquaintance  of  the  distinguished  citizen  who  has  bestowed 
this  great  gift  on  his  own  country — one  that  will  transmit 
his  name  to  posterity,  side  by  side  with  that  of  Fulton.  In 
his  case,  as  in  that  of  the  last-named  inventor,  attempts 
have  been  made  to  rob  him  equally  of  the  honours  and  the 
profits  of  his  very  ingenious  invention.  As  respects  the 
las^t,  we  hold  that  it  is  every  hour  becoming  less  and  less 
possible  for  any  American  to  maintain  his  rights  against 
numbers.  There  is  no  question  that  the  government  of  this 
great  Republic  was  intended  to  be  one  of  well-considered 
and  upright  principles,  in  which  certain  questions  are  to  be 
referred  periodically  to  majorities,  as  the  wisest  and  most 
natural,  as  well  as  the  most  just  mode  of  disposing  of  them. 
Such  a  government,  well  administered,  and  with  an  accu- 


140  THE     SEA    LIONS. 

rate  observance  of  its  governing  principles,  would  probably 
be  the  best  that  human  infirmity  will  allow  men  to  adminis- 
ter ;  but  when  the  capital  mistake  is  made  of  supposing  that 
mere  numbers  are  to  control  all  things,  regardless  of  those 
great  fundamental  laws  that  the  state  has  adopted  for  its 
own  restraint,  it  may  be  questioned  if  so  loose,  and  capri 
cious,  and  selfish  a  system,  is  not  in  great  danger  of  be- 
jcoming  the  very  worst  scheme  of  polity  that  cupidity  ever 
set  in  motion.  The  tendency — not  the  spirit  of  the  insti 
tutions,  the  two  things  being  the  very  antipodes  of  each 
other,  though  common  minds  are  so  apt  to  confound  them — 
the  tendency  of  the  institutions  of  this  country,  in  flagrant 
opposition  to  their  spirit  or  intentions,  which  were  devised 
expressly  to  restrain  the  disposition  of  men  to  innovate,  is 
out  of  all  question  to  foster  this  great  abuse,  and  to  place 
numbers  above  principles,  even  when  the  principles  were 
solemnly  adopted  expressly  to  bring  numbers  under  the 
control  of  a  sound  fundamental  law.  This  influence  of 
numbers,  this  dire  mistake  of  the  very  nature  of  liberty, 
by  placing  men  and  their  passions  above  those  great  laws 
of  right  which  come  direct  from  God  himself,  is  increasing 
in  force,  and  threatens  consequences  which  may  set  at 
naught  all  the  well-devised  schemes  of  the  last  generation 
for  the  security  of  the  state,  and  the  happiness  of  that  very 
people,  who  can  never  know  either  security  or  even  peace, 
until  they  learn  to  submit  themselves,  without  a  thought  of 
resistance,  to  those  great  rules  of  right  which  in  truth  form 
the  spirit  of  their  institutions,  and  which  are  only  too  often 
in  opposition  to  their  own  impulses  and  motives. 

We  pretend  to  no  knowledge  on  the  subject  of  the  dates 
of  discoveries  in  the  arts  and  sciences,  but  well  do  we  re 
member  the  earnestness  and  single-minded  devotion  to  a 
laudable  purpose,  with  which  our  worthy  friend  first  com 
municated  to  us  his  ideas  on  the  subject  of  using  the. 
electric^park  by  way  of  a  telegraph.  It  was  in  Paris,  and 
during  me  winter  of  1831-2,  and  the  succeeding  spring,  a 
time  whea  we  were  daily  together;  and  we  have  a  satisfac 
tion  in  recording  this  date,  that  others  may  prove  better 
claims  if  they  can.  Had  Morse  set  his  great  invention  on 
foot  thirty  years  earlier,  Roswell  Gardiner  might  have  com 
municated  with  his  owner,  and  got  a  reply,  ere  he  again 


THE    SEA    LIONS.  l41 

Bailed,  considerable  as  was  the  distance  between  them. 
As  things  then  were,  he  was  fain  to  be  content  with  writing 
a  letter,  which  was  put  into  the  deacon's  hand  about  a 
week  after  it  was  written,  by  his  niece,  on  his  own  return 
from  a  short  journey  to  Southold,  whither  he  had  been  to 
settle  and  discharge  a  tardy  claim  against  his  schooner. 

"  Here  is  a  letter  for  you,  uncle,"  said  Mary  Pratt, 
struggling  to  command  her  feelings,  though  she  blushed 
with  the  consciousness  of  her  own  interest  in  the  missive. 
"It  came  from  the  Harbour,  by  some  mistake;  Baiting 
Joe  bringing  it  across  just  after  you  left  home." 

"A  letter  with  a  post-mark  —  *  Beaufort,  N.  C.'  —  Who 
in  natur'  can  this  letter  be  from  ? — What  a  postage,  too,  to 
charge  on  a  letter  !  Fifty  cents !" 

"  That  is  a  proof,  sir,  that  Beaufort  must  be  a  long  way 
off.  Besides,  the  letter  is  double.  I  think  the  hand-writing 
is  Roswell's." 

Had  the  niece  fired  a  six-pounder  under  her  uncle's  ears, 
he  would  scarcely  have  been  more  startled.  He  even  turn 
ed  pale,  and  instead  of  breaking  the  wafer  as  he  had  been 
about  to  do,  he  actually  shrunk  from  performing  the  act, 
like  one  afraid  to  proceed. 

"What  can  this  mean?"  said  the  deacon,  taking  a  mo 
ment  to  recover  his  voice.  "  Gar'ner's  hand-writing !  So 
it  is,  I  declare.  If  that  imprudent  young  man  has  lost  my 
schooner,  I'll  never  forgive  him  in  this  world,  whatever  a 
body  may  be  forced  to  do  in  the  next !" 

"  It  is  not  necessary  to  believe  anything  as  bad  as  that, 
uncle.  Letters  are  often  written  at  sea,  and  sent  in  by 
vessels  that  are  met.  I  dare  say  Roswell  has  done  just  this." 

"  Not  he — not  he — the  careless  fellow !  He  has  lost  that 
schooner,  and  all  my  property  is  in  the  hands  of  wrackers, 
who  are  worse  than  so  many  rats  in  a  larder.  '  Beaufort, 
N.  C.'  Yes,  that  must  be  one  of  the  Bahamas,  and  N.  C. 
stands  for  New  Providence  —  Ah 's  me !  Ah 's  me  !" 

"But  N.  C.  does  not  stand  for  New  Providence  —  it 
would  be  N.P.  in  that  case,  uncle." 

"  N.  C.  or  N.  P.,  they  sound  so  dreadfully  alike,  that  I 
don't  know  what  to  think  !  Take  the  letter  and  open  it 
Oh!  how  big  it  is — there  must  be  a  protest,  or  some  other 
costly  thing  inclosed." 


142  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

Mary  did  take  the  letter,  and  she  opened  it,  though  with 
trembling  hands.  The  inclosure  soon  appeared,  and  the 
first  glance  of  her  eye  told  her  it  was  a  letter  addressed  to 
herself. 

"  What  is  it,  Mary  ? — What  is  it,  my  child  ?  Do  not  be 
afraid  to  tell  me,"  said  the  deacon,  in  a  low  faltering  voice. 
"  I  hope  I  know  how  to  meet  misfortunes  with  Christian 
fortitude.  Has  it  one  of  them  awful-looking  seals  that 
Notary  Publics  use  when  they  want  money?" 

Mary  blushed  rosy-red,  and  she  appeared  very  charming 
at  that  moment,  though  as  resolute  as  ever  to  give  her  hand 
only  to  a  youth  whose  *  God. should  be  her  God.' 

"  It  is  a  letter  to  me,  sir — nothing  else,  I  do  assure  you, 
uncle.  Roswell  often  writes  to  me,  as  you  know;  he  has 
sent  one  of  his  letters  inclosed  in  this  to  you." 

"Yes,  yes  —  I'm  glad  it's  no  worse.  Well,  where  was 
his  letter  written  1  Does  he  mention  the  latitude  and  longi 
tude  ?  It  will  be  some  comfort  to  learn  that  he  was  well  to 
the  southward  and  eastward." 

Mary's  colour  disappeared,  and  a  paleness  came  over  her 
face,  as  she  ran  through  the  few  first  lines  of  the  letter. 
Then  she  summoned  all  her  resolution,  and  succeeded  in 
telling  her  uncle  the  facts. 

'A  misfortune  has  befallen  poor  Roswell,"  she  said,  her 
voice  trembling  with  emotion,  "  though  it  does  not  seem  to 
be  half  as  bad  as  it  might  have  been.  The  letter  is  written 
at  Beaufort,  in  North  Carolina,  where  the  schooner  has  put 
in  to  get  new  masts,  having  lost  those  with  which  she  sail 
ed  in  a  gale  of  wind  off  Cape  Hatteras." 

"  Hatteras  !"  interrupted  the  deacon,  groaning — "  What 
in  natur'  had  my  vessel  to  do  down  there?" 

"I  am  sure  I  don't  know,  sir — but  I  had  better  read  you 
the  contents  of  Roswell's  letter,  and  then  you  will  hear  the 
whole  story." 

Mary  now  proceeded  to  read  aloud.  Gardiner  gave  a 
frank,  explicit  account  of  all  that  had  happened  since  he 
parted  with  his  owner,  concealing  nothing,  and  not  attempt 
ing  even  to  extenuate  his  fault.  Of  the  Sea  Lion  of  Holmes' 
Hole  he  wrote  at  large,  giving  it  as  his  opinion  that  Captain 
Daggett  really  possessed  some  clue — what  he  did  not  know 
*—to  the  existence  of  the  sealing  islands,  though  he  rather 


THE     SEA     LIONS.  143 

thought  that  he  was  not  very  accurately  informed  of  their 
precise  position.  As  respected  the  key,  Roswell  was  silent, 
for  it  did  not  at  all  occur  to  him  that  Daggett  knew  any 
thing  of  that  part  of  his  own  mission.  In  consequence  of 
this  opinion,  not  the  least  suspicion  of  the  motive  of  the 
Vineyard-man,  in  sticking  by  him,  presented  itself  to  Gar 
diner's  mind ;  and  nothing  on  the  subject  was  communi 
cated  in  the  letter.  On  the  contrary,  our  young  master 
was  quite  eloquent  in  expressing  his  gratitude  to  Daggett 
and  his  crew,  for  the  assistance  they  had  volunteered,  and 
without  which  he  could  not  have  been  ready  to  go  to  sea 
again  in  less  than  a  week.  As  it  was,  the  letter  was  partly 
written  as  the  schooner  re-passed  the  bar,  and  was  sent 
ashore  by  the  pilot  to  be  mailed.  This  fact  was  stated  in 
full,  in  a  postscript. 

"  Volunteered  !"  groaned  the  deacon,  aloud.  "As  if  a 
man  ever  volunteers  to  work  without  his  pay !" 

"  Roswell  tells  us  that  Captain  Daggett  did,  uncle,"  an 
swered  Mary,  "  arid  that  it  is  understood  between  them  he 
is  to  make  no  charge  for  his  going  into  Beaufort,  or  for 
anything  he  did  while  there.  Vessels  often  help  each  other 
in  this  kind  way,  I  should  hope,  for  the  sake  of  Christian 
charity,  sir." 

"  Not  without  salvage,  not  without  salvage !  Charity 
is  a  good  thing,  and  it  is  our  duty  to  exercise  it  on  all 
occasions ;  but  salvage  comes  into  charity  all  the  same  as 
into  any  other  interest.  This  schooner  will  ruin  me,  I 
fear,  and  leave  me  in  my  old  age  to  be  supported  by  the 
town !" 

"  That  can  hardly  happen,  uncle,  since  you  owe  nothing 
for  her,  and  have  your  farms,  and  all  your  other  property 
unencumbered.  It  is  not  easy  to  see  how  the  schooner  can 
ruin  you." 

"  Yes,  I  am  undone" — returned  the  deacon,  beating  the 
floor  with  his  foot,  in  nervous  agitation — "  as  much  undone 
as  ever  Roswell  Gar'ner's  father  was,  and  he  might  have 
been  the  richest  man  between  Oyster  Pond  and  Riverhead, 
had  he  kept  out  of  the  way  of  speculation.  I  remember 
him  much  better  off  than  I  am  myself,  and  he  died  but 
little  more  than  a  beggar.  Yes,  yes ;  I  see  how  it  is ;  this 
schooner  has  undone  rne !" 
13 


144  THE     SEA    LIONS. 

"  But  Roswell  sends  an  account  of  all  that  he  has  paid, 
and  draws  a  bill  on  you  for  its  payment.  The  entire  amount 
is  but  one  hundred  and  sixteen  dollars  and  seventy-two 
cents." 

"  That 's  not  for  salvage.  The  next  thing  will  be  a  de 
mand  for  salvage  in  behalf  of  the  owners  and  crew  of  the 
Sea  Lion  of  Humses'  Hull !  I  know  how  it  will  be,  child ; 
I  know  how  it  will  be !  Gar'ner  has  undone  me,  and  I 
shall  go  down  into  my  grave  a  beggar,  as  his  father  has 
done  already." 

"  If  such  be  the  fact,  uncle,  no  one  but  I  would  be  the 
sufferer,  and  1  will  strive  not  to  grieve  over  your  losses. 
But,  here  is  a  paper  that  Roswell  has  inclosed  in  his  letter 
to  me,  by  mistake,  no  doubt.  See,  sir ;  it  is  an  acknow 
ledgment,  signed  by  Captain  Daggett  and  all  his  crew,  ad 
mitting  that  they  went  into  Beaufort  with  Roswell  out  of 
good  feeling,  arid  allowing  that  they  have  no  claims  to 
salvage.  Here  it  is,  sir;  you  can  read  it  for  yourself." 

The  deacon  did  not  only  read  it  —  he  almost  devoured 
the  paper,  which,  as  Mary  suggested,  had  been  inclosed  in 
her  letter  by  mistake.  The  relief  produced  by  this  docu 
ment  so  far  composed  the  uncle,  that  he  not  only  read 
Gardiner's  letter  himself,  with  a  very  close  attention  to  its 
contents,  but  he  actually  forgave  the  cost  of  the  repairs  in 
curred  at  Beaufort.  While  he  was  in  the  height  of  his  joy 
at  this  change  in  the  aspect  of  things,  the  niece  stole  into 
her  own  room  in  order  to  read  the  missive  she  had  received, 
by  herself. 

The  tears  that  Mary  Pratt  profusely  shed  over  Roswell's 
letter,  were  both  sweet  and  bitter.  The  manifestations  of 
his  affection  for  her,  which  were  manly  and  frank,  brought 
tears  of  tenderness  from  her  eyes ;  while  the  recollection 
of  the  width  of  the  chasm  that  separated  them,  had  the 
effect  to  embitter  these  proofs  of  love.  Most  females  would 
have  lost  the  sense  of  duty  which  sustained  our  heroine  in 
this  severe  trial,  and,  in  accepting  the  man  of  their  heart, 
would  have  trusted  to  time,  and  her  own  influence,  and  the 
mercy  of  Divine  Providence,  to  bring  about  the  change  she 
desired;  but  Mary  Pratt  could  not  thus  blind  herself  to  her 
own  high  obligations.  The  tie  of  husband  and  wife  she 
rightly  regarded  as  the  most  serious  of  all  the  obligations 


THE    SEA    LIONS.  145 

we  can  assume,  and  she  could  not  —  would  not  plight  her 
vows  to  any  man  whose  *  God  was  not  her  God.' 

Still  there  was  much  of  sweet  consolation  in  this  little- 
expected  letter  from  Roswell.  He  wrote,  as  he  always  did, 
simply  and  naturally,  and  attempted  no  concealments.  This 
was  just  as  true  of  his  acts,  as  the  master  of  the  schooner, 
as  it  was  in  his  character  of  a  suitor.  To  Mary  he  told  the 
whole  story  of  his  weakness,  acknowledging  that  a  silly 
spirit  of  pride  which  would  not  permit  him  to  seem  to 
abandon  a  trial  of  the  qualities  of  the  two  schooners,  had 
induced  him  to  stand  on  to  the  westward  longer  than  he 
should  otherwise  have  done,  and  the  currents  had  come  to 
assist  in  increasing  the  danger.  As  for  Daggett,  he  sup 
posed  him  to  have  been  similarly  influenced;  though  he 
did  not  withhold  his  expressions  of  gratitude  for  the  gener 
ous  manner  in  which  that  seaman  had  stuck  to  him  to  the 
last. 

For  weary  months  did  Mary  Pratt  derive  sweet  consola 
tion  from  her  treasure  of  a  letter.  It  was,  perhaps,  no 
more  than  human  nature,  or  woman's  nature  at  least,  that, 
in  time,  she  got  most  to  regard  those  passages  which  best 
answered  to  the  longings  of  her  own  heart ;  and  that  she 
came  at  last  to  read  the  missive,  forgetful  in  a  degree,  that 
it  was  written  by  one  who  had  deliberately,  and  as  a  matter 
of  faith,  adopted  the  idea  that  the  Redeemer  was  not,  in 
what  may  be  called  the  catholic  sense  of  the  term,  the  Son 
of  God.  The  papers  gave  an  account  of  the  arrival  of  the 
*  Twin  Sea  Lions,'  as  the  article  styled  them,  in  the  port 
of  Beaufort,  to  repair  damages;  and  of  their  having  soon 
sailed  again,  in  company.  This  paragraph  she  cut  out  of 
the  journal  in  which  it  met  her  eye,  and  enclosing  it  in 
Roswell's  last  letter,  there  was  not  a  day  in  the  succeeding 
year  in  which  both  were  not  in  her  hand,  and  read  for  the 
hundredth  time,  or  more.  These  proofs  of  tenderness, 
however,  are  not  to  be  taken  as  evidence  of  any  lessening 
of  principle,  or  as  signs  of  a  disposition  to  let  her  judgment 
and  duty  submit  to  her  affection.  So  far  from  this,  her 
resolution  grew  with  reflection,  and  her  mind  became  more 
settled  in  a  purpose  that  she  deemed  sacred,  the  longer  she 
reflected  on  the  subject.  But,  her  prayers  in  behalf  of  her 
absent  lover  grew  more  frequent,  and  much  more  fervent. 


146  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

In  the  mean  time,  the  Twin  Lions  sailed.  On  leaving 
Beaufort,  they  ran  off  the  coast  with  a  smart  breeze  from 
south-west,  making  a  leading  wind  of  it.  There  had  been 
some  variance  of  opinion  between  Daggett  and  Gardiner, 
touching  the  course  they  ought  to  steer.  The  last  was  for 
hauling  up  higher,  and  passing  to  the  southward  of  Ber 
muda  ;  while  the  first  contended  for  standing  nearly  due 
east,  and  going  to  the  northward  of  those  islands.  Gardi 
ner  felt  impatient  to  repair  his  blunder,  and  make  the 
shortest  cut  he  could ;  whereas  Daggett  reasoned  more 
coolly,  and  took  the  winds  into  the  account,  keeping  in 
view  the  main  results  of  the  voyage.  Perhaps  the  last 
wished  to  keep  his  consort  away  from  all  the  keys,  until 
he  was  compelled  to  alter  his  course  in  a  way  that  would 
leave  no  doubt  of  his  intentions.  Of  one  thing  the  last 
was  now  certain ;  he  knew  by  a  long  trial  that  the  Sea 
Lion  of  Oyster  Pond  could  not  very  easily  run  away  from 
the  Sea  Lion  of  Holmes'  Hole,  and  he  was  fully  resolved 
that  she  should  not  escape  from  him  in  the  night,  or  in 
squalls.  As  for  Roswell  Gardiner,  not  having  the  smallest 
idea  of  looking  for  his  key,  until  he  came  north,  after  visit 
ing  the  antarctic  circle,  he  had  no  notion  whatever  of  the 
reason  why  the  other  stuck  to  him  so  closely;  and,  least 
of  all,  why  he  wished  to  keep  him  clear  of  the  West  Indies, 
until  ready  to  make  a  descent  on  his  El  Dorado. 

Beaufort  lies  about  two  degrees  to  the  northward  of  the 
four  hundred  rocks,  islets,  and  small  islands,  which  are 
known  as  the  Bermudas;  an  advanced  naval  station,  that 
belongs  to  a  rival  commercial  power,  and  which  is  occupied 
by  that  power  solely  as  a  check  on  this  republic  in  the 
event  of  war.  Had  the  views  of  real  statesmen  prevailed 
in  America,  instead  of  those  of  mere  politicians,  the  whole 
energy  of  this  republic  would  have  been  long  since  directed 
to  the  object  of  substituting  our  own  flag  for  that  of  Eng 
land,  in  these  islands.  As  things  are,  there  they  exist;  a 
station  for  hostile  fleets,  a  receptacle  for  prizes,  and  a  depot 
for  the  munitions  of  war,  as  if  expressly  designed  by  nature 
to  hold  the  whole  American  coast  in  command.  While 
little  men  with  great  names  are  wrangling  about  south 
western  acquisitions,  and  north-eastern  boundaries,  thac 
are  of  no  real  moment  to  the  growth  and  power  of  the  r& 


THE    SEA    LIONS.  147 

public,  these  islands,  that  ought  never  to  be  out  of  the 
mind  of  the  American  statesman,  have  not  yet  entered  into 
the  account  at  all ;  a  certain  proof  how  little  the  minds 
that  do,  or  ought  to,  influence  events,  are  really  up  to  the 
work  they  have  been  delegated  to  perform.  Military  ex 
peditions  have  twice  been  sent  from  this  country  to  Canada, 
when  both  the  Canadas  are  not  of  one-half  the  importance 
to  the  true  security  and  independence  of  the  country — (no 
nation  is  independent  until  it  holds  the  control  of  all  its 
greater  interests  in  its  own  hands)  —  as  the  Bermudas. 
When  England  asked  the  cession  of  territory  undoubtedly 
American,  because  it  overshadowed  Quebec,  she  should 
have  been  met  with  this  plain  proposition — "  Give  us  the 
Bermudas,  and  we  will  exchange  with  you.  You  hold 
those  islands  as  a  check  on  our  power,  and  we  will  hold 
the  -angle  of  Maine  for  a  check  on  yours,  unless  you  will 
consent  to  make  a  fair  and  mutual  transfer.  We  will  not 
attack  you  for  the  possession  of  the  Bermudas,  for  we  deem 
a  just  principle  even  more  important  than  such  an  acces 
sion  ;  but  when  you  ask  us  to  cede,  we  hold  out  our  hands 
*o  take  an  equivalent  in  return.  The  policy  of  this  nation 
is  not  to  be  influenced  by  saw-logs,  but  by  these  manifest, 
important,  and  ulterior  interests.  If  you  wish  Maine,  give 
us  Bermuda  in  exchange,  or  go  with  your  wishes  ungrati- 
fied."  Happily,  among  us,  events  are  stronger  than  men ; 
and  the  day  is  not  distant  when  the  mere  force  of  circum 
stances  will  compel  the  small-fry  of  diplomacy  to  see  what 
the  real  interests  and  dignity  of  the  republic  demand,  in 
reference  to  this  great  feature  of  its  policy. 

Roswell  Gardiner  and  Daggett  had  several  discussions 
touching  the  manner  in  which  they  ought  to  pass  those 
islands.  There  were  about  four  degrees  to  spare  between 
the  trades  and  the  Bermudas ;  and  the  former  was  of  opi 
nion  that  they  might  pass  through  this  opening,  and  make 
a  straighter  wake,  than  by  going  farther  north.  These 
consultations  took  place  from  quarter-deck  to  quarter-deck, 
as  the  two  schooners  ran  off  free,  steering  directly  for  the 
islands,  as  a  sort  of  compromise  between  the  two  opinions. 
The  distance  from  the  main  to  the  Bermudas  is  computed 
at  about  six  hundred  miles,  which  gave  sufficient  leisure 
for  the  discussion  of  the  subject  in  all  its  bearings.  The 
13* 


148  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

conversations  were  amicable,  and  the  weather  continuing 
mild,  and  the  wind  standing,  they  were  renewed  each  after* 
noon,  when  the  vessels  closed,  as  if  expressly  to  admit  of 
the  dialogue.  In  all  this  time,  five  days  altogether,  it  was 
farther  ascertained  that  the  difference  in  sailing  between 
the  Twin  Lions,  as  the  sailors  now  began  to  call  the  two 
schooners,  was  barely  perceptible.  If  anything,  it  was 
slightly  in  favour  of  the  Vineyard  craft,  though  there  yet 
remained  many  of  the  vicissitudes  of  the  seas,  in  which  to 
make  the  trial.  While  this  uncertainty  as  to  the  course 
prevailed,  the  low  land  appeared  directly  ahead,  when 
Daggett  consented  to  pass  it  to  the  southward,  keeping  the 
cluster  in  sight,  however,  as  they  went  steadily  on  towards 
the  southward  and  eastward. 


CHAPTER  XI. 

"With  glossy  skin,  and  dripping  mane, 

And  reeling  limbs,  and  reeking  flank, 
The  wild  steed's  sinewy  nerves  still  strain 
Up  the  repelling  bank." 

MAZEPPA. 

ROSWELL  GARDINER  felt  as  if  he  could  breathe  more 
freely  when  they  had  run  the  Summers  Group  fairly  out  of 
sight,  and  the  last  hummock  had  sunk  into  the  waves  of 
the  west.  He  was  now  fairly  quit  of  America,  and  hoped 
to  see  no  more  of  it,  until  he  made  the  well-known  rock 
that  points  the  way  into  that  most  magnificent  of  all  the 
havens  of  the  earth,  the  bay  of  Rio  de  Janeiro.  Travellers 
dispute  whether  the  palm  ought  to  be  given  to  this  port,  or 
to  those  of  Naples  and  Constantinople.  Each,  certainly, 
has  its  particular  claims  to  surpassing  beauty,  which  ought 
to  be  kept  in  view  in  coming  to  a  decision.  Seen  from  its 
outside,  with  its  minarets,  and  Golden  Horn,  and  Bospho« 
rus,  Constantinople  is,  probably,  the  most  glorious  spot  on 
earth.  Ascend  its  mountains,  and  overlook  the  gulfs  of 


THE     SEA     LIONS.  149 

Salerno  and  Gaeta,  as  well  as  its  own  waters,  the  Cam- 
pagna  Felici  and  the  memorials  of  the  past,  all  seen  in  the 
witchery  of  an  Italian  atmosphere,  and  the  mind  becomes 
perfectly  satisfied  that  nothing  equal  is  to  be  found  else 
where  ;  but  enter  the  bay  of  Rio,  and  take  the  whole  of 
the  noble  panorama  in  at  a  glance,  and  even  the  experienced 
traveller  is  staggered  with  the  stupendous  as  well  as  be 
witching  character  of  the  loveliness  that  meets  his  eye. 
Witchery  is  a  charm  that  peculiarly  belongs  to  Italy,  as  all 
must  feel  who  have  ever  been  brought  within  its  influence; 
but  it  is  a  witchery  that  is  more  or  less  shared  by  all  regions 
of  low  latitudes. 

Our  two  Sea  Lions  met  with  no  adventures  worthy  of 
record,  until  they  got  well  to  the  southward  of  the  equator. 
They  had  been  unusually  successful  in  getting  through  the 
calm  latitudes ;  and  forty-six  days  from  Montauk,  they  spoke 
a  Sag  Harbour  whaler,  homeward  bound,  that  had  come 
out  from  Rio  only  the  preceding  week,  where  she  had  been 
to  dispose  of  her  oil.  By  this  ship,  letters  were  sent  home ; 
and  as  Gardiner  could  now  tell  the  deacon  that  he  should 
touch  at  Rio  even  before  the  time  first  anticipated,  he  be 
lieved  that  he  should  set  the  old  man's  heart  at  peace.  A 
little  occurrence  that  took  place  the  very  day  they  parted 
with  the  whaler,  added  to  the  pleasure  this  opportunity  of 
communicating  with  the  owner  had  afforded.  As  the 
schooners  were  moving  on  in  company,  about  a  cable's 
length  asunder,  Hazard  saw  a  sudden  and  extraordinary 
movement  on  board  the  Vineyard  Lion,  as  the  men  now 
named  that  vessel,  to  distinguish  her  from  her  consort. 

"Look  out  for  a  spout!"  shouted  the  mate  to  Stimson, 
who  happened  to  be  on  the  foretopsail-yard  at  work,  when 
this  unexpected  interruption  to  the  quiet  of  the  passage 
occurred.  "  There  is  a  man  overboard  from  the  other 
schooner,  or  they  see  a  spout." 

"A  spout!  a  spout!"  shouted  Stimson,  in  return;  "  and 
a  spalm  (sperm,  or  spermaceti,  was  meant)  whale,  in  the 
bargain  !  Here  he  is,  sir,  two  p'ints  on  our  weather  beam." 

This  was  enough.  If  any  one  has  had  the  misfortune  to 
be  in  a  coach  drawn  by  four  horses,  when  a  sudden  fright 
starts  them  off  at  speed,  he  can  form  a  pretty  accurate 
notion  of  the  movement  that  now  took  place  on  board  of 


150  THE     SEA     LIONS. 

Deacon  Pratt's  craft.  Every  one  seemed  to  spring  into 
activity,  as  if  a  single  will  directed  a  common  set  of  mus 
cles.  Those  who  were  below  literally  "  tumbled  up,"  as 
seamen  express  it,  and  those  who  were  aloft  slid  down  to 
the  deck  like  flashes  of  lightning.  Captain  Gardiner  sprang 
out  of  his  cabin,  seemingly  at  a  single  bound ;  at  another, 
he  was  in  the  whale-boat  that  Hazard  was  in  the  very  act 
of  lowering  into  the  water,  as  the  schooner  rounded-to. 
Perceiving  himself  anticipated  here,  the  mate  turned  to  the 
boat  on  the  other  quarter,  and  was  in  her,  and  in  the  water, 
almost  as  soon  as  his  commanding  officer. 

Although  neither  of  the  schooners  was  thoroughly  fitted 
for  a  whaler,  each  had  lines,  lances,  harpoons,  &,c.,  in  rea 
diness  in  their  quarter-boats,  prepared  for  any  turn  of  luck 
like  this  which  now  offered.  The  process  of  paddling  up 
to  whales,  which  is  now  so  common  in  the  American  ships, 
was  then  very  little  or  not  at  all  resorted  to.  It  is  said  that 
the  animals  have  got  to  be  so  shy,  in  consequence  of  being 
so  much  pursued,  that  the  old  mode  of  approaching  them 
will  not  suffice,  and  that  it  now  requires  much  more  care 
and  far  more  art  to  take  one  of  these  creatures,  than  it  did 
thirty  years  since.  On  this  part  of  the  subject,  we  merely 
repeat  what  we  hear,  though  we  think  we  can  see  an  ad 
vantage  in  the  use  of  the  paddle  that  is  altogether  indepen 
dent  of  that  of  the  greater  quiet  of  that  mode  of  forcing  a 
boat  ahead.  He  that  paddles  looks  ahead,  and  the  approach 
is  more  easily  regulated,  when  the  whole  of  the  boat's  crew 
are  apprised,  by  means  of  their  own  senses,  of  the  actual 
state  of  things,  than  when  they  attain  their  ideas  of  them 
through  the  orders  of  an  officer.  The  last  must  govern  in 
all  cases,  but  the  men  are  prepared  for  them,  when  they 
can  see  what  is  going  on,  and  will  be  more  likely  to  act 
mih  promptitude  and  intelligence,  and  will  be  less  liable 
to  make  mistakes. 

The  four  boats,  two  from  each  schooner,  dropped  into 
the  water  nearly  about  the  same  time.  Daggett  was  at  the 
steering-oar  of  one,  as  was  Roswell  at  that  of  another. 
Hazard,  and  Macy,  the  chief  mate  of  the  Vineyard  craft, 
were  at  the  steering-oars  of  the  two  remaining  boats.  All 
pulled  in  the  direction  of  the  spot  on  the  ocean  where  the 
spouts  had  been  seen.  It  was  the  opinion  of  those  who  had 


THESEALIONS.  151 

been  aloft,  that  there  were  several  fish;  and  it  was  certain 
that  they  were  of  the  most  valuable  species,  or  the  sperma 
ceti,  one  barrel  of  the  oil  of  which  was  worth  about  as 
much  as  the  oil  of  three  of  the  ordinary  sort,  or  that  of  the 
right  whale,  supposing  them  all  to  yield  the  same  quantity 
in  number  of  barrels.  The  nature  or  species  of  the  fish 
was  easily  enough  determined  by  the  spouts;  the  right 
whale  throwing  up  two  high  arched  jets  of  water,  while  the 
spermaceti  throws  but  a  single,  low,  bushy  one. 

It  was  not  long  ere  the  boats  of  the  two  captains  came 
abreast  of  each  other,  and  within  speaking  distance.  A 
stern  rivalry  was  now  apparent  in  every  countenance,  th» 
men  pulling  might  and  main,  and  without  even  a  smile 
among  them  all.  Every  face  was  grave,  earnest,  and  de 
termined  ;  every  arm  strung  to  its  utmost  powers  of  exer 
tion.  The  men  rowed  beautifully,  being  accustomed  to 
the  use  of  their  long  oars  in  rough  water,  and  in  ten  min 
utes  they  were  all  fully  a  mile  dead  to  windward  of  the  two 
schooners. 

Few  things  give  a  more  exalted  idea  of  the  courage  and 
ingenuity  of  the  human  race  than  to  see  adventurers  set 
forth,  in  a  mere  shell,  on  the  troubled  waters  of  the  open 
ocean,  to  contend  with  and  capture  an  animal  of  the  size 
of  the  whale.  The  simple  circumstance  that  the  last  is  in 
its  own  element,  while  its  assailants  are  compelled  to  ap 
proach  it  in  such  light  and  fragile  conveyances,  that,  to  the 
unpractised  eye,  it  is  sufficiently  difficult  to  manage  them 
amid  the  rolling  waters,  without  seeking  so  powerful  an 
enemy  to  contend  with.  But,  little  of  all  this  did  the  crews 
of  our  four  boats  now  think.  They  had  before  them  the 
objects,  or  one  of  the  objects,  rather,  of  their  adventure, 
and  so  long  as  that  was  the  case,  no  other  view  but  that  of 
prevailing  could  rise  before  their  eyes. 

"  How  is  it,  Gar'ner?"  called  out  the  Vineyard  master; 
*'  shall  it  be  shares  1  or  does  each  schooner  whale  on  her 
own  hook?" 

This  was  asked  in  a  friendly  way,  and  apparently  with 
great  indifference  as  to  the  nature  of  the  reply,  but  with 
profound  art.  It  was  Daggett's  wish  to  establish  a  sort  of 
partnership,  which,  taken  in  connection  with  the  good  feel 
ing  created  by  the  affair  at  Beaufort,  would  be  very  apt  to 


52  THESEALIONS. 

lead  on,  to  further  and  more  important  association.  Luckily 
for  Gardiner,  an  idea  crossed  his  mind,  just  as  he  was  about 
to  reply,  which  induced  the  wisest  answer.  It  was  the 
thought,  that  competition  would  be  more  likely  to  cause 
exertion  than  a  partnership,  and  that  the  success  of  all 
would  better  repay  them  for  their  toils  and  risks,  should 
each  vessel  act  exclusively  for  itself.  This  is  the  principle 
that  renders  the  present  state  of  society  more  healthful  and 
advantageous  than  that  which  the  friends  of  the  different 
systems  of  associating,  that  are  now  so  much  in  vogue, 
wish  to  substitute  in  its  place.  Individuality  is  an  all-im 
portant  feeling  in  the  organization  of  human  beings  into 
communities;  and  the  political  economist  who  does  not 
use  it  as  his  most  powerful  auxiliary  in  advancing  civiliza 
tion,  will  soon  see  it  turn  round  in  its  tracks,  and  become 
a  dead  weight;  indulging  its  self-love,  by  living  with  the 
minimum  of  exertion,  instead  of  pushing  his  private  advan 
tage,  with  the  maximum. 

"  I  think  each  vessel  had  better  work  for  herself  and  her 
owners,"  answered  Roswell  Gardiner. 

As  the  schooners  were  in  the  trades,  there  was  a  regular 
<sea  running,  and  one  that  was  neither  very  high  nor  much 
broken.  Still,  the  boats  were  lifted  on  it  like  egg-shells 
or  bubbles,  the  immense  power  of  the  ocean  raising  the 
largest  ships,  groaning  under  their  vast  weight  of  ordnance, 
as  if  they  were  feathers.  In  a  few  minutes,  Gardiner  and 
Daggett  became  a  little  more  separated,  each  looking  ea 
gerly  for  the  spouts,  which  had  not  been  seen  by  either 
since  quitting  his  vessel.  All  this  time  the  two  mates  came 
steadily  on,  until  the  whole  of  the  little  fleet  of  boats  was, 
by  this  time,  not  less  than  a  marine  league  distant  from  the 
schooners.  The  vessels  themselves  were  working  up  to 
windward,  to  keep  as  near  to  the  boats  as  possible,  making 
short  tacks  under  reduced  canvass;  a  shipkeeper,  the  cook, 
steward,  and  one  or  two  other  hands,  being  all  who  were 
left  on  board  them. 

We  shall  suppose  that  most  of  our  readers  are  sufficiently 
acquainted  with  the  general  character  of  that  class  of  ani 
mals  to  which  the  whale  belongs,  to  know  that  all  of  the 
genus  breathe  the  atmospheric  air,  which  is  as  necessary 
for  life  to  them  as  it  is  to  man  himself.  The  only  differ* 


THE     SEA     LIONS.  153 

ence  in  this  respect  is,  that  the  whale  can  go  longer  with 
out  renewing  his  respiration  than  all  purely  land-animals, 
though  he  must  come  up  to  breathe  at  intervals,  or  die.  It 
is  the  exhaling  of  the  old  stock  of  air,  when  he  brings  the 
"  blow-holes,"  as  seamen  call  the  outlets  of  his  respiratory 
organs,  to  the  surface,  that  forces  the  water  upward,  and 
forms  the  "  spouts,"  which  usually  indicate  to  the  whalers 
the  position  of  their  game.  The  "  spouts"  vary  in  appear 
ance,  as  has  been  mentioned,  owing  to  the  number  and 
situation  of  the  orifices  by  which  the  exhausted  air  escapes. 
No  sooner  is  the  vitiated  air  exhaled,  than  the  lungs  receive 
a  new  supply;  and  the  animal  either  remains  near  the  sur 
face,  rolling  about  and  sporting  amid  the  waves,  or  descends 
again,  a  short  distance,  in  quest  of  its  food.  This  food, 
also,  varies  materially  in  the  different  species.  The  right- 
whale  is  supposed  to  live  on  what  may  be  termed  marine 
insects,  or  the  mollusc®  of  the  ocean,  which  it  is  thought 
he  obtains  by  running  in  the  parts  of  the  sea  where  they 
most  abound ;  arresting  them  by  the  hairy  fibres  which 
grow  on  the  lamina?  of  bone  that,  in  a  measure,  compose 
his  jaws,  having  no  teeth.  The  spermaceti,  however,  is 
furnished  with  regular  grinders,  which  he  knows  very  well 
how  to  use,  and  with  which  he  often  crushes  the  boats  of 
those  who  come  against  him.  Thus,  the  whalers  have  but 
one  danger  to  guard  against,  in  assaulting  the  common 
animal,  viz.,  his  flukes,  or  tail;  while  the  spermaceti,  in 
addition  to  the  last  means  of  defence,  possesses  those  of  his 
teeth  or  jaws.  As  this  latter  animal  i^  quite  one-third  head, 
he  has  no  very  great  dissemblance  to  the  alligator  in  this 
particular. 

By  means  of  this  brief  description  of  the  physical  forma 
tion  and  habits  of  the  animals  of  which  our  adventurers 
were  in  pursuit,  the  general  reader  will  be  the  better  able 
to  understand  that  which  it  is  our  duty  now  to  record. 
After  rowing  the  distance  named,  the  boats  became  a  little 
separated,  in  their  search  for  the  fish.  That  spouts  had 
been  seen,  there  was  no  doubt ;  though,  since  quitting  the 
schooners,  no  one  in  the  boats  had  got  a  further  view  of 
the  fish, — if  fish,  animals  with  respiratory  organs  can  be 
termed.  A  good  look-out  for  spouts  had  been  kept  by  each 
man  at  the  steering-oars,  but  entirely  without  success.  Had 


154  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

not  Roswell  and  Daggett,  previously  to  leaving  their  re* 
spective  vessels,  seen  the  signs  of  whales  with  their  own 
eyes,  it  is  probable  that  they  would  now  have  both  been 
disposed  to  return,  calling  in  their  mates.  But,  being  cer 
tain  that  the  creatures  they  sought  Were  not  far  distant, 
they  continued  slowly  to  separate,  each  straining  his  eyes 
in  quest  of  his  game,  as  his  boat  rose  on  the  summit  of  the 
rolling  and  tossing  waves.  Water  in  motion  was  all  around 
them ;  and  the  schooners  working  slowly  up  against  the 
trades,  were  all  that  rewarded  their  vigilant  and  anxious 
looks.  Twenty  times  did  each  fancy  that  he  saw  the  dark 
back,  or  head,  of  the  object  he  sought;  but  as  often  did  it 
prove  to  be  no  more  than  a  Upper  of  water,  rolling  up  into 
a  hummock  ere  it  broke,  or  melted  away  again  into  the 
general  mass  of  the  unquiet  ocean.  When  it  is  remembered 
that  the  surface  of  the  sea  is  tossed  into  a  thousand  fantas 
tic  outlines,  as  its  waves  roll  along,  it  can  readily  be  ima 
gined  how  such  mistakes  could  arise. 

At  length  Gardiner  discerned  that  which  his  practised 
eye  well  knew.  It  was  the  flukes,  or  extremity  of  the  tail 
of  an  enormous  whale,  distant  from  him  less  than  a  quarter 
of  a  mile,  and  in  such  a  position  as  to  place  the  animal  at 
about  the  same  breadth  of  water  from  Daggett.  It  would 
seem  that  both  of  these  vigilant  officers  perceived  their 
enemy  at  the  same  instant,  for  each  boat  started  for  it,  as 
if  it  had  been  instinct  with  life.  The  pike  or  the  shark 
could  not  have  darted  towards  its  prey  with  greater  prompti 
tude,  and  scarcely  with  greater  velocity,  than  these  two 
boats.  Very  soon  ttfe  whole  herd  was  seen,  swimming 
along  against  the  wind,  an  enormous  bull-whale  leading, 
while  half  a  dozen  calves  kept  close  to  the  sides  of  their 
dams,  or  sported  among  themselves,  much  as  the  offspring 
of  land  animals  delight  in  their  youth  and  strength.  Pre 
sently  a  mother  rolled  lazily  over  on  her  side,  permitting 
its  calf  to  suck.  Others  followed  this  example;  and  then 
the  leader  of  the  herd  ceased  his  passage  to  windward,  bul 
began  to  circle  the  spot,  as  if  in  complaisance  to  those  con 
siderate  nurses  who  thus  waited  on  the  wants  of  their 
young.  At  this  interesting  moment,  the  boats  came  glanc 
ing  in  among  the  herd. 

Had  the  competition  and  spirit  of  rivalry  been  at  a  lower 


THE    SEA    LIONS.  155 

point  among  our  adventurers  than  it  actually  was,  greater 
caution  might  have  been  observed.  It  is  just  as  dangerous 
to  assault  a  whale  that  has  its  young  to  defend,  as  to  assault 
most  other  animals.  We  know  that  the  most  delicate  women 
become  heroines  in  such  straits;  and  nature  seems  to  have 
given  to  the  whole  sex,  whether  endowed  with  reason  or 
only  with  an  instinct,  the  same  disposition  to  die  in  defence 
of  the  helpless  creatures  that  so  much  depend  on  their  care. 
But,  no  one  there  now  thought  of  the  risk  he  ran,  it  being 
the  Vineyard  against  Oyster  Pond,  one  Sea  Lion  against 
the  other,  and,  in  many  instances,  pocket  against  pocket. 

Roswell,  as  if  disdaining  all  meaner  game,  pulled  quite 
through  the  herd,  and  laid  the  bows  of  his  boat  directly  oh 
the  side  of  the  old  bull  —  a  hundred-barrel  whale,  at  the 
very  least.  No  sooner  did  the  enormous  creature  feel  the 
harpoon,  than,  throwing  its  flukes  upward,  it  descended 
into  the  depths  of  the  ocean,  with  a  velocity  that  caused 
smoke  to  arise  from  the  chuck  through  which  the  line 
passed.  Ordinarily,  the  movement  of  a  whale  is  not  much 
faster  than  an  active  man  can  walk ;  and,  when  it  runs  on 
the  surface,  its  speed  seldom  exceeds  that  of  a  swift  vessel 
under  full  sail ;  but,  when  suddenly  startled,  with  the  har 
poon  in  its  blubber,  the  animal  is  capable  of  making  a  pro 
digious  exertion.  When  struck,  it  usually  '  sounds,'  as  it 
is  termed,  or  runs  downward,  sometimes  to  the  depth  of  a 
mile;  and  it  is  said  that  instances  have  been  known  in 
which  the  fish  inflicted  great  injury  on  itself,  by  dashing 
its  nead  against  rocks. 

In  the  case  before  us,  after  running  out  three  or  four 
hundred  fathoms  of  line,  the  '  bull'  to  which  Gardiner  had 
'  fastened/  came  up  to  the  surface,  '  blowed,'  and  began  to 
move  slowly  towards  the  herd  again.  No  sooner  was  the 
harpoon  thrown,  than  a  change  took  place  in  the  disposi 
tion  of  the  crew  of  the  boat,  which  it  may  be  well  to  ex 
plain.  The  harpoon  is  a  barbed  javelin,  fastened  to  a  staff 
to  give  it  momentum.  The  line  is  attached  to  this  weapon, 
the  proper  use  of  which  is  to  '  fasten'  to  the  fish,  though  it 
sometimes  happens  that  the  animal  is  killed  at  the  first 
blow  This  is  when  the  harpoon  has  been  hurled  by  a  very 
skilful  and  vigorous  harpooner.  Usually,  this  weapon  pene 
trates  some  distance  into  the  blubber  in  which  a  whale  is 
14 


156  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

encased,  and  when  it  is  drawn  back  by  the  plunge  of  the 
fish,  the  barbed  parts  get  embedded  in  the  tough  integu* 
ments  of  the  hide,  together  with  the  blubber,  and  hold. 
The  iron  of  the  harpoon  being  very  soft,  the  shank  bends 
under  the  strain  of  the  line,  leaving  the  staff  close  to  the 
animal's  body.  Owing  to  this  arrangement,  the  harpoon 
offers  less  resistance  to  the  water,  as  the  whale  passes  swiftly 
through  it.  No  sooner  did  the  boat-steerer,  or  harpooner, 
cast  his  '  irons,'  as  whalers  term  the  harpoon,  than  he 
changed  places  with  Roswell,  who  left  the  steering-oar,  and 
proceeded  forward  to  wield  the  lance,  the  weapon  with 
which  the  victory  is  finally  consummated.  The  men  now 
'peaked'  their  oars,  as  it  is  termed;  or  they  placed  the 
handles  in  elects  made  to  receive  them,  leaving  the  blades 
elevated  in  the  air,  so  as  to  be  quite  clear  of  the  water. 
This  was  done  to  get  rid  of  the  oars,  in  readiness  for  other 
duty,  while  the  instruments  were  left  in  the  tholes,  to  be 
resorted  to  in  emergencies.  This  gives  a  whale-boat  a  pe 
culiar  appearance,  with  its  five  long  oars  raised  in  the  air, 
at  angles  approaching  forty-five  degrees.  In  the  mean  time, 
as  the  bull  approached  the  herd,  or  school,*  as  the  whalers 
term  it,  the  boats'  crew  began  to  haul  in  line,  the  boat- 
steerer  coiling  it  away  carefully,  in  a  tub  placed  in  the 
stern-sheets  purposely  to  receive  it.  Any  one  can  under 
stand  how  important  it  was  that  this  part  of  the  duty  should 
be  well  performed,  since  bights  of  line  running  out  of  a 
boat,  dragged  by  a  whale,  would  prove  so  many  snares  to 
the  men's  legs,  unless  previously  disposed  of  in  a  place 
proper  to  let  it  escape  without  this  risk.  For  this  reason 
it  is,  that  the  end  of  a  line  is  never  permitted  to  run  out  at 
the  bow  of  a  boat  at  all.  It  might  do  some  injury  in  its 
passage,  and  an  axe  is  always  applied  near  the  bows,  when 
it  is  found  necessary  to  cut  from  a  whale. 

It  was  so  unusual  a  thing  to  see  a  fish  turn  towards  the 
spot  where  he  was  struck,  that  Roswell  did  not  know  what 
to  make  of  this  manoeuvre  in  his  bull.  At  first  he  supposed 
the  animal  meant  to  make  fight,  and  set  upon  him  with  its 
tremendous  jaws ;  but  it  seemed  that  caprice  or  alarm 

*  We  suppose  this  word  to  be  a  corruption  of  the  Dutch  "  schule  ' 
•which,  we  take  it,  means  the  same  tiling. 


THE     SEA.    LIONS.  157 

directed  the  movement;  for,  after  coming  within  a  hundred 
yards  of  the  boat,  the  creature  turned  and  commenced 
sculling  away  to  windward,  with  wide  and  nervous  sweeps 
of  its  formidable  flukes.  It  is  by  this  process  that  all  the 
fish  of  this  genus  force  their  way  through  the  water,  their 
tails  being  admirably  adapted  to  the  purpose.  As  the  men 
had  showed  the  utmost  activity  in  hauling  in  upon  the  line, 
by  the  time  the  whale  went  off  to  windward  again  they  had 
got  the  boat  up  within  about  four  hundred  feet  of  him. 

Now  commenced  a  tow,  dead  to  windward,  it  being 
known  that  a  fish,  when  struck,  seldom  runs  at  first  in  any 
other  direction.  The  rate  at  which  the  whale  moved  was 
not  at  the  height  of  his  speed,  though  it  exceeded  six  knots. 
Occasionally,  this  rate  was  lessened,  and  in  several  in 
stances  his  speed  was  reduced  to  less  than  half  of  that  just 
mentioned.  Whenever  one  of  these  lulls  occurred,  the  men 
would  haul  upon  the  line,  gradually  getting  nearer  and 
nearer  to  the  fish,  until  they  were  within  fifty  feet  of  his 
tremendous  flukes.  Here,  a  turn  was  taken  with  the  line, 
and  an  opportunity  to  use  the  lance  was  waited  for. 

Whalers  say  that  a  forty-barrel  bull  of  the  spermaceti 
sort  is  much  the  most  dangerous  to  deal  with  of  all  the 
animals  of  this  species.  The  larger  bulls  are  infinitely  the 
most  powerful,  and  drive  these  half-grown  creatures  away 
in  herds  by  themselves,  that  are  called  '  pads,'  a  circum 
stance  that  probably  renders  the  young  bull  discontented 
and  fierce.  The  last  is  not  only  more  active  than  the  larger 
animal,  but  is  much  more  disposed  to  make  fight,  com 
monly  giving  his  captors  the  greatest  trouble.  This  may 
be  one  of  the  reasons  why  Roswell  Gardiner  now  found 
himself  towing  at  a  reasonable  rate,  so  close  upon  the  flukes 
of  a  hundred-barrel  whale.  Still,  there  was  that  in  the 
movements  of  this  animal,  that  induced  our  hero  to  be  ex 
ceedingly  wary.  He  was  now  two  leagues  from  the  schooners, 
and  half  that  distance  from  the  other  boats,  neither  of  which 
had  as  yet  fastened  to  a  fish.  This  latter  circumstance  was 
imputed  to  the  difficulty  the  different  officers  had  in  making 
their  selections,  cows,  of  the  spermaceti  breed,  when  they 
give  suck,  being  commonly  light,  and  yielding,  compara 
tively,  very  small  quantities  of  head-matter  and  oil.  In  se 
lecting  the  bull,  Roswell  had  shown  his  judgment,  the  male 


158  THE     SEA    LIONS. 

animal  commonly  returning  to  its  conquerors  twice  the 
profit  that  is  derived  from  the  female. 

The  whale  to  which  Roswell  was  fast  continued  sculling 
away  to  windward  for  quite  two  hours,  causing  the  men  to 
entirely  lose  sight  of  the  other  boats,  and  bringing  the  top 
sails  of  the  schooners  themselves  down  to  the  water's  edge. 
Fortunately,  it  was  not  yet  noon,  and  there  were  no  imme 
diate  apprehensions  from  the  darkness;  nor  did  the  bull 
appear  to  be  much  alarmed,  though  the  boat  was  towing  so 
close  in  his  rear.  At  first,  or  before  the  irons  were  thrown, 
the  utmost  care  had  been  taken  not  to  make  a  noise ;  but 
the  instant  the  crew  were  '  fast,'  whispers  were  changed 
into  loud  calls,  and  orders  were  passed  in  shouts,  rather 
than  in  verbal  commands.  The  wildest  excitement  pre 
vailed  among  the  men,  strangely  blended  with  a  cool  dex 
terity  ;  but  it  was  very  apparent  that  a  high  sporting  fever 
was  raging  among  them.  Gardiner  himself  was  much  the 
coolest  man  in  his  own  boat,  as  became  his  station  and 
very  responsible  duties. 

Stimson,  the  oldest  and  the  best  seaman  in  the  schooner, 
he  who  had  admonished  his  young  commander  on  the  sub 
ject  of  the  gratitude  due  to  the  Deity,  acted  as  the  master's 
boat-steerer,  having  first  performed  the  duty  of  harpooner. 
It  was  to  him  that  Gardiner  now  addressed  the-remarks  he 
made,  after  having  been  fastened  to  his  whale  fully  two 
hours. 

"  This  fellow  is  likely  to  give  us  a  long  drag,"  said  the 
master,  as  he  stood  balancing  himself  on  the  clumsy  elects 
in  the  bows  of  the  boat,  using  his  lance  as  an  adept  in 
saltation  poises  his  pole  on  the  wire,  the  water  curling 
fairly  above  the  gunwale  forward,  with  the  rapid  movement 
of  the  boat;  "I  would  haul  up  alongside,  and  give  him 
the  lance,  did  I  not  distrust  them  flukes.  I  believe  he 
knows  we  are  here." 

"That  he  does  —  that  does  he, Captain  Gar'ner.  It's 
always  best  to  be  moderate  and  wait  your  time,  sir.  There  'a 
a  jerk  about  that  chap's  flukes  that  I  don't  like  myself,  and 
it 's  best  to  see  what  he  would  be  at,  before  we  haul  up  any 
nearer.  Don't  you  see,  sir,  that  every  minute  or  two  he 
strikes  down,  instead  of  sculling  off  handsomely  and  with  a 
wide  sweep,  as  becomes  a  whale  ?" 


THE    SEA    LIONS.  159 

"  That  is  just  the  motion  I  distrust,  Stephen,  and  I  shall 
wait  a  bit  to  see  what  he  would  be  at.  I  hope  those  ship- 
keepers  will  be  busy,  and  work  the  schooners  well  up  to 
windward  before  it  gets  to  be  dark.  Our  man  is  asleep 
half  his  time,  and  is  apt  to  let  the  vessel  fall  off  a  point  or 
two." 

"  Mr.  Hazard  gave  him  caution  to  keep  a  bright  look 
out,  sir,  and  I  think  he  '11  be  apt  to — look  out,  sir  ! — Look 
out!" 

This  warning  was  well-timed ;  for,  just  at  that  instant 
the  whale  ceased  sculling,  and  lifting  its  enormous  tail  high 
in  the  air,  it  struck  five  or  six  blows  on  the  surface  of  the 
water,  that  made  a  noise  which  might  have  been  heard  half 
a  league,  besides  filling  the  atmosphere  immediately  around 
him  with  spray.  As  the  tail  first  appeared  in  the  air,  line 
was  permitted  to  run  out  of  the  boat,  increasing  the  dis 
tance  between  its  bows  and  the  flukes  to  quite  a  hundred 
feet.  Nothing  could  better  show  the  hardy  characters  of 
the  whalers  than  the  picture  then  presented  by  Roswell 
Gardiner  and  his  companions.  In  the  midst  of  the  Atlantic, 
leagues  from  their  vessel,  and  no  other  boat  in  sight,  there 
they  sat  patiently  waiting  the  moment  when  the  giant  of 
the  deep  should  abate  in  his  speed,  or  in  his  antics,  to  en 
able  them  to  approach  and  complete  their  capture.  Most 
of  the  men  sat  with  their  arms  crossed,  and  bodies  half- 
turned,  regarding  the  scene,  while  the  two  officers,  the 
master  and  boat-steerer,  if  the  latter  could  properly  be  thus 
designated,  watched  each  evolution  with  a  keenness  of 
vigilance  that  let  nothing  like  a  sign  or  a  symptom  escape 
them. 

Such  was  the  state  of  things,  the  whale  still  threshing 
the  sea  with  his  flukes,  when  a  cry  among  his  men  induced 
Roswell  for  a  moment  to  look  aside.  There  came  Daggett 
fast  to  a  small  bull,  which  was  running  directly  in  the 
wind's  eye  with  great  speed,  dragging  the  boat  after  him, 
which  was  towing  astern  at  a  distance  of  something  like 
two  hundred  fathoms.  At  first,  Roswell  thought  he  should 
be  compelled  to  cut  from  his  whale,  so  directly  towards  his 
own  boat  did  the  other  animal  direct  his  course.  But,  in 
timidated,  most  probably,  by  the  tremendous  blows  with 
which  the  larger  bull  continued  to  belabour  the  ocean,  the 
14* 


160  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

smaller  animal  sheered  away  in  time  to  avoid  a  collision, 
though  he  now  began  to  circle  the  spot  where  his  dreaded 
monarch  lay.  This  change  of  course  gave  rise  to  a  new 
source  of  apprehension.  If  the  smaller  bull  should  con 
tinue  to  encircle  the  larger,  there  was  great  reason  to  be 
lieve  that  the  line  of  Daggett  might  get  entangled  with  the 
boat  of  Gardiner,  and  produce  a  collision  that  might  prove 
fatal  to  all  there.  In  order  to  be  ready  to  meet  this  danger, 
Roswell  ordered  his  crew  to  be  on  the  look-out,  and  to 
have  their  knives  in  a  state  for  immediate  use.  It  was  not 
known  what  might  have  been  the  consequence  of  this  cir 
cular  movement  as  respects  the  two  boats;  for,  before  they 
could  come  together,  Daggett's  line  actually  passed  into 
the  mouth  of  Gardiner's  whale,  and  drawing  up  tight  into 
the  angle  of  his  jaws,  set  the  monster  in  motion  with  a 
momentum  and  power  that  caused  the  iron  to  draw  from 
the  smaller  whale,  which  by  this  time  had  more  than  half 
encircled  the  animal.  So  rapid  was  the  rate  of  running 
now,  that  Roswell  was  obliged  to  let  out  line,  his  whale 
sounding  to  a  prodigious  depth.  Daggett  did  the  same 
unwilling  to  cut  as  long  as  he  could  hold  on  to  his  line. 

At  the  expiration  of  five  minutes  the  large  bull  came  up 
again  for  breath,  with  both  lines  still  fast  to  him ;  the  one 
in  the  regular  way,  or  attached  to  the  harpoon,  and  the 
other  jammed  in  the  jaws  of  the  animal  by  means  of  the 
harpoon  and  staff,  which  formed  a  sort  of  toggle  at  the 
angle  of  his  enormous  mouth.  In  consequence  of  feeling 
this  unusual  tenant,  the  fish  compressed  its  jaws  together, 
thus  rendering  the  fastening  so  much  the  more  secure.  As 
both  boats  had  let  run  line  freely  while  the  whale  was 
sounding,  they  now  found  themselves  near  a  quarter  of  a 
mile  astern  of  him,  towing  along,  side  by  side,  and  not  fifty 
feet  asunder.  If  the  spirit  of  rivalry  had  been  aroused 
among  the  crew  of  these  two  boats  before,  it  was  now  ex 
cited  to  a  degree  that  menaced  acts  of  hostility. 

"  You  know,  of  course,  Captain  Daggett,  that  this  is  my 
whale,"  said  Gardiner.  "  I  was  fast  to  him  regularly,  and 
was  only  waiting  for  him  to  become  a  little  quiet  to  lance 
him,  when  your  whale  crossed  his  course,  fouled  your  line, 
and  has  got  you  fast  in  an  unaccountable  way,  but  not  ac 
cording  to  whaling  law." 


THE     SEA    LIONS.  161 

"I  don't  know  that.  I  fastened  to  a  whale,  Captain 
Gar'ner,  and  am  fast  to  a  whale  now.  It  must  be  proved 
that  I  have  no  right  to  the  crittur'  before  I  give  him  up." 

Gardiner  understood  the  sort  of  man  with  whom  he  had 
to  deal  too  well  to  waste  words  in  idle  remonstrances.  Re 
solved  to  maintain  his  just  rights  at  every  hazard,  he  ordered 
his  men  to  haul  in  upon  the  line,  the  movement  of  the  whale 
becoming  so  slow  as  to  admit  of  this  measure.  Daggett's 
crew  did  the  same,  and  a  warm  contest  existed  between 
the  two  boats,  as  to  which  should  now  first  close  with  the 
*ish  and  kill  it.  This  was  not  a  moment  for  prudence  and 
caution.  It  was  "haul  in  —  haul  in,  boys,"  in  both  boats, 
without  any  regard  to  the  danger  of  approaching  the  whale. 
A  very  few  minutes  sufficed  to  bring  the  parties  quite  in  a 
line  with  the  flukes,  Gardiner's  boat  coming  up  on  the  lar 
board  or  left-hand  side  of  the  animal,  where  its  iron  was 
fast,  and  Daggett's  on  the  opposite,  its  line  leading  out  of 
the  jaws  of  the  fish  in  that  direction.  The  two  masters 
stood  erect  on  their  respective  clumsy  cleets,  each  poising 
his  lance,  waiting  only  to  get  near  enough  to  strike.  The 
men  were  now  at  the  oars,  and  without  pausing  for  any 
thing,  both  crews  sprung  to  their  ashen  instruments,  and 
drove  the  boats  headlong  upon  the  fish.  Daggett,  perhaps, 
was?  the  coolest  and  most  calculating  at  that  moment,  but 
Roswell  was  the  most  nervous,  and  the  boldest.  The  boat 
of  the  last  actually  hit  the  side  of  the  whale,  as  its  young 
commander  drove  his  lance  through  the  blubber,  into  the 
vitals  of  the  fish.  At  the  same  instant  Daggett  threw  his 
lance  with  consummate  skill,  and  went  to  the  quick.  It 
was  now  ci  stern  all !"  for  life,  each  boat  backing  off  from 
the  danger  as  fast  as  hands  could  urge.  The  sea  was  in  a 
foam,  the  fish  going  into  his  "flurry"  almost  as  soon  as 
struck,  and  both  crews  were  delighted  to  see  the  red  of  the 
blood  mingling  its  deep  hues  with  the  white  of  the  troubled 
water.  Once  or  twice  the  animal  spouted,  but  it  was  a  fluid 
dyed  in  his  gore.  In  ten  minutes  it  turned  up  and  was 


162  THE    SEA    LIONS 


CHAPTER  XII. 

"God  save  you,  sir!" 

"And  you,  sir!  you  are  welcome." 

"Travel  you  far  on,  or  are  you  at  the  furthest?" 

"Sir,  at  the  furthest  for  a  week  or  two." 

SHAKSFEARZ. 

GARDINER  and  Daggett  met,  face  to  face,  on  the  carcase 
of  the  whale.  Each  struck  his  lance  into  the  blubber,  stea 
dying  himself  by  its  handle;  and  each  eyed  the  other  in  a 
way  that  betokened  feelings  awakened  to  a  keen  desire  to 
defend  his  rights.  It  is  a  fault  of  American  character, — a 
fruit  of  the  institutions,  beyond  a  doubt, — that  renders  men 
unusually  indisposed  to  give  up.  This  stubbornness  of 
temperament,  that  so  many  mistake  for  a  love  of  liberty 
and  independence,  is  productive  of  much  good,  when  the 
parties  happen  to  be  right,  and  of  quite  as  much  evil,  when 
they  happen  to  be  wrong.  It  is  ever  the  wisest,  as,  indeed, 
it  is  the  noblest  course,  to  defer  to  that  which  is  just,  with 
a  perfect  reliance  on  its  being  the  course  pointed  out  by 
the  ringer  of  infallible  wisdom  and  truth.  He  who  does 
this,  need  feel  no  concern  for  his  dignity,  or  for  his  suc 
cess  ;  being  certain  that  it  is  intended  that  right  shall  pre 
vail  in  the  end,  as  prevail  it  will  and  does.  But  both  our 
shipmasters  were  too  much  excited  to  feel  the  force  of  these 
truths ;  and  there  they  stood,  sternly  regarding  each  other, 
as  if  it  were  their  purpose  to  commence  a  new  struggle  for 
the  possession  of  the  leviathan  of  the  deep. 

"  Captain  Daggett,"  said  Roswell,  sharply,  "  you  are  too 
old  a  whaler  not  to  know  whaling  law.  My  irons  were  first 
in  this  fish ;  I  never  have  been  loose  from  it,  since  it  was 
first  struck,  and  my  lance  killed  it.  Under  such  circum 
stances,  sir,  I  am  surprised  that  any  man,  who  knows  the 
usages  among  whalers,  should  have  stuck  by  the  creature 
as  you  have  done." 

•*  It 's  in  my  natur',  Gar'ner,"  was  the  answer.   "  I  stuck 


THE    SEA    LIONS.  163 

by  you  when  you  was  dismasted  under  Hatteras,  and  I  stick 
by  everything  that  I  undertake.  This  is  what  I  call  Vine 
yard  natur' ;  and  1  'm  not  about  to  discredit  my  native 
country." 

"  This  is  idle  talk,"  returned  Roswell,  casting  a  severe 
glance  at  the  meii  in  the  Vineyard  boat,  among  whom  a 
common  smile  arose,  as  if  they  highly  approved  of  the  reply 
of  their  own  officer.  "  You  very  well  know  that  Vineyard 
law  cannot  settle  such  a  question,  but  American  law. 
Were  you  man  enough  to  take  this  whale  from  me,  as  I 
trust  you  are  not,  on  our  return  home  you  could  be  and 
would  be  made  to  pay  smartly  for  the  act.  Uncle  Sam  has 
a  long  arm,  with  which  he  sometimes  reaches  round  the 
whole  earth.  Before  you  proceed  any  further  in  this  mat 
ter,  it  may  be  well  to  remember  that." 

Daggett  reflected ;  and  it  is  probable  that,  as  he  cooled 
off  from  the  excitement  created  by  his  late  exertions,  he 
fully  recognised  the  justice  of  the  other's  remarks,  and  the 
injustice  of  his  own  claims.  Still,  it  seemed  to  him  un- 
American,  un-Vineyard,  if  the  reader  please,  to  "  give  up;" 
and  he  clung  to  his  error  with  as  much  pertinacity  as  if  he 
had  been  right. 

"  If  you  are  fast,  I  am  fast,  too.  I  'm  not  so  certain  of 
your  law.  When  a  man  puts  an  iron  into  a  whale,  com 
monly  it  is  his  fish,  if  he  can  get  him,  and  kill  him.  But 
there  is  a  law  above  all  whalers'  law,  and  that  is  the  law 
of  Divine  Providence.  Providence  has  fastened  us  to  this 
crittur',  as  if  on  purpose  to  give  us  a  right  in  it;  and  I'm 
by  no  means  so  sure  States'  law  won't  uphold  that  doctrine. 
Then,  I  lost  my  own  whale  by  means  of  this,  and  am  enti 
tled  to  some  compensation  for  such  a  loss." 

"  You  lost  your  own  whale  because  he  led  round  the 
head  of  mine,  and  not  only  drew  his  own  iron,  but  came 
nigh  causing  me  to  cut.  If  any  one  is  entitled  to  damage 
for  such  an  act,  it  is  I,  who  have  been  put  to  extra  trouble 
in  getting  my  fish." 

"  I  do  believe  it  was  my  lance  that  did  the  job  for  the 
fellow !  I  darted,  and  you  struck  ;  in  that  way  I  got  the 
start  of  you,  and  may  claim  to  have  made  the  crittur'  spout 
the  first  blood.  But,  hearkee,  Gar'ner — there 's  my  hand— 
we  've  been  friends  so  far,  and  I  want  to  hold  out  friends. 


164  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

I  will  make  you  a  proposal,  therefore.  Join  stocks  from 
this  moment,  ana  whale,  and  seal,  and  do  all  things  else  in 
common.  When  we  make  a  final  stowage  for  the  return 
passage,  we  can  make- a  final  division,  and  each  man  take 
his  share  of  the  common  adventure." 

To  do  Roswell  justice,  he  saw  through  the  artifice  of  this 
proposition,  the  instant  it  was  uttered.  It  had  the  effect, 
notwithstanding,  a  good  deal  to  mollify  his  feelings,  since 
it  induced  him  to  believe  that  Daggett  was  manoeuvring  to 
get  at  his  great  secret,  rather  than  to  assail  his  rights. 

"  You  are  part  owner  of  your  schooner,  Captain  Dag 
gett,"  our  hero  answered,  "  while  I  have  no  other  interest 
in  mine  than  my  lay,  as  her  master.  You  may  have  au 
thority  to  make  such  a  bargain,  but  I  have  none.  It  is  my 
duty  to  fill  the  craft  as  fast  and  as  full  as  I  can,  and  carry 
her  back  safely  tp  Deacon  Pratt;  but,  I  dare  say,  your 
Vineyard  people  will  let  you  cruise  about  the  earth  at  your 
pleasure,  trusting  to  Providence  for  a  profit.  I  cannot 
accept  your  offer." 

"  This  is  answering  like  a  man,  Gar'ner,  and  I  like  you 
all  the  better  for  it.  Forty  or  fifty  barrels  of  ile  shan't 
break  friendship  between  us.  I  helped  you  into  port  at 
Beaufort,  and  gave  up  the  salvage;  and  now  I'll  help  tow 
your  whale  alongside,  and  see  you  fairly  through  this  busi 
ness,  too.  Perhaps  I  shall  have  all  the  better  luck  for 
being  a  little  generous." 

There  was  prudence,  as  well  as  art,  in  this  decision  of 
Daggett's.  Notwithstanding  his  ingenious  pretensions  to 
a  claim  in  the  whale,  he  knew  perfectly  well  that  no  law 
would  sustain  it,  and  that,  in  addition  to  the  chances  of 
being  beaten  on  the  spot,  which  were  at  least  equal,  he 
would  certainly  be  beaten  in  the  courts  at  home,  should  he 
really  attempt  to  carry  out  his  declared  design.  Then,  he 
really  deferred  to  the  expectation  that  his  future  good  for 
tune  might  be  influenced  by  his  present  forbearance.  Su 
perstition  forms  a  material  part  of  a  sailor's  nature,  if,  in 
deed,  it  do  not  that  of  every  man  engaged  in  hazardous  and 
uncertain  adventures.  How  far  his  hopes  were  justified  in 
this  last  respect,  will  appear  in  the  contents  of  a  communi 
cation  that  Deacon  Pratt  received  from  the  master  of  his 


THE    SEA    LIONS.  165 

schooner,  and  to  which  we  will  now  refer,  as  the  clearest 
and  briefest  mode  of  continuing  the  narrative. 

The  Sea  Lion  left  Oyster  Pond  late  in  September.  It 
was  the  third  day  of  March,  in  the  succeeding  year,  that 
Mary  was  standing  at  a  window,  gazing  with  melancholy 
interest  at  that  point  in  the  adjacent  waters  where  last  she 
had  seen,  nearly  six  months  before,  the  vessel  of  Roswell 
disappear  behind  the  woods  of  the  island  that  bears  his 
family  name.  There  had  been  a  long  easterly  gale,  but  the 
weather  had  changed ;  the  south  wind  blew  softly,  and  all 
the  indications  of  an  early  spring  were  visible.  For  the 
first  time  in  three  months,  she  had  raised  the  sash  of  that 
window ;  and  the  air  that  entered  was  bland,  and  savoured 
of  the  approaching  season. 

"  I  dare  say,  uncle" — the  deacon  was  writing  near  a  very 
low  wood-fire,  which  was  scarcely  more  than  embers  —  "1 
dare  say,  uncle,"  said  the  sweet  voice  of  Mary,  which  was  a 
little  tremulous  with  feeling,  "that the  ocean  is  calm  enough 
to-day.  It  is  very  silly  in  us  to  tremble,  when  there  is  a 
storm,  for  those  who  must  now  be  so  many,  many  thousand 
miles  away.  What  is  the  distance  between  the  Antarctic 
Seas  and  Oyster  Pond,  I  wonder?" 

"  You  ought  to  be  able  to  calculate  that  yourself,  gal,  or 
what  is  the  use  to  pay  for  your  schooling?" 

"  I  should  not  know  how  to  set  about  it,  uncle,"  returned 
the  gentle  Mary,  "  though  I  should  be  very  glad  to  know. '  • 

"  How  many  miles  are  there  in  a  degree  of  latitude 
child  ?  You  know  that,  I  believe." 

"  More  than  sixty-nine,  sir." 

"  Well,  in  what  latitude  is  Oyster  Pond?" 

"  I  have  heard  Roswell  say  that  we  were  a  little  higher, 
as  he  calls  it,  than  forty-one." 

"  Well,  41  times  69" — figuring  as  he  spoke — "  make 
2829 ;  say  we  are  3000  miles  from  the  equator,  the  nearest 
way  we  can  get  there.  Then,  the  antarctic  circle  com 
mences  in  23°  30'  south,  which,  deducted  from  90  degrees, 
leave  just  66°  30'  between  the  equator  and  the  nearest  spot 
within  the  sea  you  have  mentioned.  Now,  66°  30'  give 
about  4589  statute  miles  more,  in  a  straight  line,  allowing 
only  69  to  a  degree.  The  two  sums,  added  together,  make 
7589  miles,  or  rather  more.  But  the  road  is  not  straight, 


166  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

by  any  means,  as  shipmasters  tell  me ;  and  1  suppose  Gar'- 
ner  must  have  gone,  at  the  very  least,  8000  miles  to  reach 
his  latitude,  to  say  nothing  of  a  considerable  distance  of 
longitude  to  travel  over,  to  the  southward  of  Cape  Horn." 

"  It  is  a  terrible  distance  to  have  a  friend  from  us !" 
ejaculated  Mary,  though  in  a  low,  dejected  tone 

"  It  is  a  terrible  distance  for  a  man  to  trust  his  property 
away  from  him,  gal ;  and  I  do  not  sleep  a-nights  for  think 
ing  of  it,  when  I  remember  where  my  own  schooner  may 
be  all  this  time !" 

"  Ah,  here  is  Baiting  Joe,  and  with  a  letter  in  his  hand, 
uncle,  I  do  declare !" 

It  might  be  a  secret  hope  that  impelled  Mary,  for  away 
she  bounded,  like  a  young  fawn,  running  to  meet  the  old 
fisherman  at  the  door.  No  sooner  did  her  eyes  fall  on  the 
superscription,  than  the  large  package  was  pressed  to  her 
heart,  and  she  seemed,  for  an  instant,  lost  in  thanksgiving. 
That  no  one  might  unnecessarily  be  a  witness  of  what 
passed  between  her  uncle  and  herself,  Joe  was  directed  to 
the  kitchen,  where  a  good  meal,  a  glass  of  rum  and  water, 
and  the  quarter  of  a  dollar  that  Mary  gave  him  as  she 
showed  the  way,  satisfied  him  with  the  results  of  his  trouble. 

"  Here  it  is,  uncle,"  cried  the  nearly  breathless  girl,  re- 
entering  the  'keeping-room,'  and  unconsciously  holding  the 
letter  still  pressed  to  her  heart, — "A  letter — a  letter  from 
Roswell,  in  his  own  precious  hand." 

A  flood  of  tears  gave  some  relief  to  feelings  that  had  so 
long  been  pent,  and  eased  a  heart  that  had  been  compressed 
nearly  to  breaking.  At  any  other  time,  and  at  this  unequi 
vocal  evidence  of  the  hold  the  young  man  had  on  the  affec 
tions  of  his  niece,  Deacon  Pratt  would  have  remonstrated 
with  her  on  the  folly  of  refusing  to  become  "  Roswell  Gar'- 
ner's"  wife;  but  the  sight  of  the  letter  drove  all  other 
thoughts  from  his  head,  concentrating  his  whole  being  in 
the  fate  of  the  schooner. 

"  Look,  and  see  if  it  has  the  Antarctic  post-mark  on  it, 
Mary,"  said  the  deacon,  in  a  tremulous  voice. 

This  request  was  not  made  so  much  in  ignorance  as  in 
trepidation.  The  deacon  very  well  knew  that  the  islands 
the  Sea  Lion  was  to  visit  were  uninhabited,  and  were  des- 


THE     SEA     LIONS.  167 

titute  of  post-offices;  but  his  ideas  were  confused,  and  ap 
prehension  rendered  him  silly. 

"  Uncle !''  exclaimed  the  niece,  wiping  the  tears  from  a 
face  that  vras  now  rosy  with  blushes  at  her  own  weakness, 
"  surely,  Roswell  can  find  no  post-office  where  he  is  !" 

But  the  letter  must  have  some  post-mark,  child.  Baiting 
Joe  has  not  brought  it  himself  into  the  country." 

"  It  is  post-marked  '  New  York,'  sir,  and  nothing  else — 
Yes,  here  is  *  Forwarded  by  Cane,  Spriggs,  and  Button, 
Rio  de  Janeiro.'  It  must  have  been  put  into  a  post-office 
there." 

"Rio! — Here  is  more  salvage,  gal — more  salvage  com 
ing  to  afflict  me !" 

"  But  you  had  no  salvage  to  pay,  uncle,  on  the  other  oc 
casion  ;  perhaps  there  will  be  none  to  pay  on  this.  Had  I 
not  better  open  the  letter  at  once,  and  see  what  has  hap 
pened?" 

"Yes, -open  it,  child,"  answered  the  deacon,  in  a  voice 
jo  feeble  as  to  be  scarcely  audible — "open  it  at  once,  as 
YOU  say,  and  let  me  know  my  fate.  Anything  is  better  than 
this  torment !" 

Mary  did  not  wait  for  a  second  permission,  but  instantly 
broke  the  seal.  It  might  have  been  the  result  of  education, 
or  there  may  be  such  a  thing  as  female  instinct  in  these 
matters;  but,  certain  it  is,  that  the  girl  turned  towards  the 
window,  as  she  tore  the  paper  asunder,  and  slipped  the 
tetter  that  bore  her  own  name  into  a  fold  of  her  dress,  so 
dexterously,  that  one  far  more  keen-sighted  than  her  uncle 
would  not  have  detected  the  act.  No  sooner  was  her  own 
letter  thus  secured,  than  the  niece  offered  the  principal 
epistle  to  her  uncle. 

"  Read  it  yourself,  Mary,"  said  the  last,  in  his  querulous 
tones.  "  My  eyes  are  so  dim,  that  I  could  not  see  to  read  it." 

"  Rio  di  Janeiro,  Province  of  Brazil,  South  America, 
Nov.  14th,  1819,"  commenced  the  niece. 

"Rio  di  Janeiro!"  interrupted  the  uncle.  "  Why  that 
is  round  Cape  Horn,  isn't  it,  Mary?" 

"  Certainly  not,  sir.  Brazil  is  on  the  east  side  of  the 
Andes,  and  Rio  di  Janeiro  is  its  capital.  The  king  of  Por 
tugal  Jives  there  now  and  has  lived  there  as  long  as  I  can 
remember." 

15 


168  THE     SEA     LIONS. 

"  Yes,  yes ;  I  had  forgotten.  The  Brazil  Banks,  where 
our  whalers  go,  are  in  the  Atlantic.  But  what  can  have 
taken  Gar'ner  into  Rio,  unless  it  be  to  spend  more  money  !' 

"  By  reading  the  letter,  sir,  we  shall  soon  know.  I  see 
there  is  something  about  spermaceti  oil  here." 

"He?  And  spalm  ile,  do  you  say !"  exclaimed  the  dea 
con,  brightening  up  at  once  —  "  Read  on,  Mary,  my  good 
gal — read  the  letter  as  fast  as  you  can — read  it  at  a  trot." 

"  Deacon  Israel  Pratt  —  Dear  sir,"  continued  Mary,  in 
obedience  to  this  command,  "the  two  schooners  sailed  from 
Beaufort,  North  Carolina,  as  stated  already  per  mail,  in  a 
letter  written  at  that  port,  and  which  has  doubtless  come 
to  hand.  We  had  fine  weather  and  a  tolerable  run  of  it, 
until  we  reached  the  calm  latitudes,  where  we  were  de 
tained  by  the  usual  changes  for  about  a  week.  On  the 
18th  Oct.  the  pleasant  cry  of  '  there  she  spouts'  was  heard 
aboard  here,  and  we  found  ourselves  in  the  neighbourhood 
of  whales.  Both  schooners  lowered  their  boats,  and  I  was 
soon  fast  to  a  fine  bull,  who  gave  us  a  long  tow  before  the 
lance  was  put  into  him,  and  he  was  made  to  spout  blood. 
Captain  Daggett  set  up  some  claims  to  this  fish,  in  conse 
quence  of  his  line's  getting  foul  of  the  creature's  jaws,  but 
he  changed  his  mind  in  good  season,  and  clapped  on  to 
help  tow  the  whale  down  to  the  vessel.  His  irons  drew  from 
a  young  bull,  and  a  good  deal  of  dissatisfaction  existed 
among  the  other  crew,  until,  fortunately,  the  school  of 
young  bulls  came  round  quite  near  us,  when  Captain  Dag- 
gett  and  his  people  succeeded  in  securing  no  less  than 
three  of  the  fish,  and  Mr.  Hazard  got  a  very  fine  one 
for  us. 

"  I  am  happy  to  say  that  we  had  very  pleasant  weather 
to  cut  in,  and  secured  every  gallon  of  the  oil  of  both  our 
whales,  as  did  Captain  Daggett  all  of  his.  Our  largest  bull 
made  one  hundred  and  nineteen  barrels,  of  which  forty- 
three  barrels  was  head-matter.  I  never  saw  better  case 
and  junk  in  a  whale  in  my  life.  The  smallest  bull  turned 
out  well  too,  making  fifty-eight  barrels,  of  which  twenty- 
one  was  head.  Daggett  got  one  hundred  and  thirty-three 
barrels  from  his  three  fish,  a  very  fair  proportion  of  head, 
though  not  as  large  as  our  own.  Having  this  oil  on  board, 
we  came  in  here  after  a  pleasant  run ;  and  I  have  shipped, 


THE     SEA     LIONS.  169 

as  per  invoice  enclosed,  one  hundred  and  seventy-seven  bar 
rels  of  spermaceti  oil,  viz.,  sixty-four  barrels  of  head,  and  rest 
in  body-oil,  to  your  order,  care  of  Fish  &/  Grinnell,  New 
York,  by  the  brig  Jason,  Captain  Williams,  who  will  sail 
for  home  about  the  20th  proximo,  and  to  whom  I  trust  this 
letter"— 

"  Stop,  Mary,  my  dear — this  news  is  overpowering — it  is 
almost  too  good  to  be  true,"  interrupted  the  deacon,  nearly 
as  much  unmanned  by  this  intelligence  of  his  good  fortune 
as  he  had  previously  been  by  his  apprehensions.  "  Yes,  it 
does  seem  too  good  to  be  true  ;  read  it  again,  child ;  yes, 
read  every  syllable  of  it  again !" 

Mary  complied,  delighted  enough  to  hear  all  she  could 
of  Roswell's  success. 

"  Why,  uncle,"  said  the  deeply-interested  girl,  "  all  this 
oil  is  spermaceti !  It  is  worth  a  great  deal  more  than  so 
much  of  that  which  comes  of  the  right  whale." 

"  More !  Ay,  nearly  as  three  for  one.  Hunt  me  up  the 
last  Spectator,  girl  —  hunt  me  up  the  last  Spectator,  and 
let  me  see  at  once  at  what  they  quote  spalm." 

Mary  soon  found  the  journal,  and  handed  it  to  her 
uncle. 

"  Yes,  here  it  is,  and  quoted  $1.12|  per  gallon,  as  I  live ! 
That 's  nine  shillings  a  gallon,  Mary — just  calculate  on  that 
bit  of  paper — thirty  times  one  hundred  and  seventy-seven, 
Mary;  how  much  is  that,  child?" 

"  I  make  it  5310,  uncle  —  yes,  that  is  right.  But  what 
are  the  30  times  for,  sir?" 

"  Gallons,  gal,  gallons.  Each  barrel  has  30  gallons  in  it, 
if  not  more.  There  ought  to  be  32  by  rights,  but  this  is  a 
cheating  age.  Now.  multiply  5310  by  9,  and  see  what  that 
comes  to." 

"  Just  47,790,  sir,  as  near  as  I  can  get  it." 

"  Yes,  that's  the  shillings.  Now,  divide  47,790  by  8,  my 
dear.  Be  actyve,  Mary,  be  actyve." 

"  It  leaves  5973,  with  a  remainder  of  6,  sir.  I  believe 
I'm  right." 

"  I  dare  say  you  are,  child ;  yes,  I  dare  say  you  are.  This 
is  the  dollars.  A  body  may  call  them  $6000,  as  the  barrels 
will  a  little  overiun  the  30  gallons.  My  share  of  this  will 


170  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

be  two-thirds,  and  that  will  nett  the  handsome  sum  of,  say 
$4000!" 

The  deacon  rubbed  his  hands  with  delight,  and  having 
found  his  voice  again,  his  niece  was  astonished  at  hearing 
him  utter  what  he  had  to  say,  with  a  sort  of  glee  that 
sounded  in  her  ears  as  very  unnatural,  coming  from  him. 
So  it  was,  however,  and  she  dutifully  endeavoured  not  to 
think  of  it. 

"  Four  thousand  dollars,  Mary,  will  quite  cover  the  first 
cost  of  the  schooner;  that  is  without  including  outfit  and 
spare-rigging,  of  which  her  master  took  about  twice  as  much 
as  was  necessary.  He's  a  capital  fellow,  is  that  young 
Gar'ner,  and  will  make  an  excellent  husband,  as  I  've  always 
told  you,  child.  A  little  wasteful,  perhaps,  but  an  excellent 
youth  at  the  bottom.  I  dare  say  he  lost  his  spars  off  Cape 
Hatteras  in  trying  to  outsail  tha't  Daggett ;  but  I  overlook 
all  that  now.  He's  a  capital  youth  to  work  upon  a  whale 
or  a  sea-elephant !  There  isn't  his  equal,  as  I'll  engage, 
in  all  Ameriky,  if  you  '11  only  let  him  know  where  to  find 
he  creatur's.  I  knew  his  character  before  I  engaged  him  ; 
for  no  man  but  a  real  skinner  shall  ever  command  a  craft 
of  mine." 

"  Roswell  is  a  good  fellow,"  answered  Mary,  with  em 
phasis,  the  tears  filling  her  eyes  as  she  listened  to  these 
eulogiums  of  her  uncle  on  the  youth  she  loved  with  all  of  a 
woman's  tenderness,  at  the  very  moment  she  scrupled  to 
place  her  happiness  on  one  whose  '  God  was  not  her  God.1 
"No  one  knows  him  better  than  I,  uncle,  and  no  one  re 
spects  him  more.  But,  had  I  not  better  read  the  rest  of  his 
letter  ? — there  is  a  good  deal  more  of  it." 

"Goon,  child,  go  on  —  but,  read  the  part  over  again 
where  he  speaks  of  the  quantity  of  the  ile  he  has  shipped 
to  Fish  &  Grinnell." 

Mary  did  as  requested,  when  she  proceeded  to  read  aloud 
the  rest  of  the  communication. 

"  I  have  been  much  at  a  loss  how  to  act  in  regard  to 
Captain  Daggett,"  said  Roswell,  in  his  letter.  "  He  stood 
by  me  so  manfully  and  generously  off  Cape  Hatteras,  that  I 
did  not  like  to  part  company  in  the  night,  or  in  a  squall, 
which  would  have  seemed  ungrateful,  as  well  as  wearing  a 
sort  of  runaway  look.  I  am  afraid  he  has  some  knowledge 


THE    SEA    LIONS.  171 

of  the  existence  of  our  islands,  though  I  doubt  whether  he 
has  their  latitude  and  longitude  exactly.  Something  there 
is  of  this  nature  on  board  the  other  schooner,  her  people 
often  dropping  hints  to  my  officers  and  men,  when  they 
have  been  gamming.  I  have  sometimes  fancied  Daggett 
sticks- so  close  to  us,  that  heinay  get  the  advantage  of  our 
reckoning  to  help  him  to  what  he  wants  to  find.  He  is  no 
great  navigator  anywhere,  running  more  by  signs  and  cur 
rents,  in  my  judgment,  than  by  the  use  of  his  instruments. 
Still,  he  could  find  his  way  to  any  part  of  the  world." 

"  Stop  there,  Mary ;  stop  a  little,  and  let  me  have  time 
to  consider.  Isn't  it  awful,  child?" 

The; niece  changed  colour,  and  seemed  really  frightened, 
so  catching  was  the  deacon's  distress,  though  she  scarce 
knew  what  was  the  mat'jer. 

"What  is  awful,  uncle?"  at  length  she  asked,  anxious 
to  know  the  worst. 

"  This  covetousness  in  them  Vineyarders !  I  consider 
it  both  awful  and  wicked.  I  must  get  the  Rev.  Mr.  Whittle 
to  preach  against  the  sin  of  covetousness ;  it  does  gain  so 
much  ground  in  Ameriky !  The  whole  church  should  lift 
its  voice  against  it,  or  it  will  shortly  lift  its  voice  against 
the  church.  To  think  of  them  Daggetts'  fitting  out  a 
schooner  to  follow  my  craft  about  the  'arth  in  this  un 
heard-of  manner ;  just  as  if  she  was  a  pilot-boat,  and  young 
Gar'ner  a  pilot !  I  do  hope  the  fellows  will  make  a  wrack 
of  it,  among  the  ice  of  the  antarctic  seas !  That  would  be 
a  fit  punishment  for  their  impudence  and  covetousness." 

"  I  suppose,  sir,  they  think  that  they  have  the  same  right 
to  sail  on  the  ocean  that  others  have.  Seals  and  whales  are 
the  gifts  of  God,  and  one  person  has  no  more  right  to  them 
than  another." 

"  You  forget,  Mary,  that  one  man  may  have  a  secret  that 
another  doesn't  know.  In  that  case  he  ought  not  to  go 
prying  about  like  an  old  woman  in  a  village  neighbour 
hood.  Read  on,  child,  read  on,  arid  let  me  know  the  worst 
at  once." 

"  I  shall  sail  to-morr.ow,  having  finished  all  my  business 

here,  and  hope  to  be  off  Cape  Horn  in  twenty  days,  if  not 

sooner.     In  what  manner  I  am  to  get  rid  of  Daggett,  I  do 

not  yet  know.     He  outsails  me  a  little  on  all  tacks,  unless 

15* 


172  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

it  be  in  very  heavy  weather,  when  I  have  a  trifling  advan 
tage  over  him.  It  will  be  in  my  power  to  quit  him  any 
dark  night;  but  if  I  let  him  go  ahead,  and  he  should  really 
have  any  right  notions  about  the  position  of  the  islands,  he 
might  get  there  first,  and  make  havoc  among  the  seals." 

"Awful,  awful !"  interrupted  the  deacon,  again ;  "  that 
would  be  the  worst  of  all !  I  won't  allow  it ;  I  forbid  it — 
it  shall  not  be." 

"Alas !  uncle,  poor  Roswell  is  too  far  from  us,  now,  to 
hear  these  words.  No  doubt  the  matter  is  long  since  de 
cided,  and  he  has  acted  according  to  the  best  of  his  judg 
ment." 

"  It  is  terrible  to  have  one's  property  so  far  away !  Go 
vernment  ought  to  have  steam-boats,  or  packets  of  some 
sort,  running  between  New  York  and  Cape  Horn,  to  carry 
orders  back  and  forth. — But  we  shall  never  have  things 
right,  Mary,  so  long  as  the  democrats  are  uppermost." 

By  this  remark,  which  savours  very  strongly  of  a  species 
of  censure  that  is  much  in  fashion  in  the  coteries  of  that 
Great  Emporium,  which  it  is  the  taste  and  pleasure  of  its 
people  to  term  a  commercial  emporium,  especially  among 
elderly  ladies,  the  reader  will  at  once  perceive  that  the 
deacon  was  a  federalist,  which  was  somewhat  of  a  novelty 
in  Suffolk,  thirty  years  since.  Had  he  lived  down  to  our 
own  times,  the  old  man  would  probably  have  made  all  the 
gyrations  in  politics  that  have  distinguished  the  school  to 
which  he  would  have  belonged,  and,  without  his  own  know 
ledge,  most  probably,  would  have  been  as  near  an  example 
of  perpetual  motion  as  the  world  will  ever  see,  through  his 
devotion  to  what  are  now  called  "Whig  Principles."  We 
are  no  great  politician,  but  time  has  given  us  the  means  of 
comparing;  and  we  often  smile  when  we  hear  the  disciples 
of  Hamilton,  and  of  Adams,  and  of  all  that  high-toned 
school,  declaiming  against  the  use  of  the  veto,  and  talking 
of  the  "one  man  power,"  and  of  Congress'  leading  the  go 
vernment  !  The  deacon  was  very  apt  to  throw  the  oppro 
brium  of  even  a  bad  season  on  the  administration,  and  the 
reader  has  seen  what  he  thought  of  the  subject  of  running 
packets  between  New  York  and  Cape  Horn. 

"  There  ought  to  be  a  large  navy,  Mary,  a  monstrous 
navy,  so  that  the  vessels  might  be  kept  carrying  letters 


THE     SEA     LIONS.  173 

about,  and  serving  the  public.  But  we  shall  never  hav 
things  right,  until  Rufus  King,  or  some  man  like  him,  gets 
in.  If  Gar'ner  lets  that  Daggett  get  the  start  of  him,  he 
never  need  come  home  again.  The  islands  are  as  much 
mine  as  if  I  had  bought  them ;  and  I  Jm  not  sure  an  action 
wouldn't  lie  for  seals  taken  on  them  without  my  consent. 
Yes,  yes ;  we  want  a  monstrous  navy,  to  convoy  sealers, 
and  carry  letters  about,  and  keep  some  folks  at  home,  while 
it  lets  other  folks  go  about  their  lawful  business." 

"  Of  what  islands  are  you  speaking,  uncle?  Surely  the 
sealing  islands,  where  Roswell  has  gone,  are  public  and 
uninhabited,  and  no  one  has  a  better  right  there  than  an 
other  !" 

The  deacon  perceived  that  he  had  gone  too  far,  in  his 
tribulation,  and  began  to  have  a  faint  notion  that  he  was 
making  a  fool  of  himself.  He  asked  his  niece,  in  a  very 
faint  voice,  therefore,  to  hand  him  the  letter,  the  remainder 
of  which  he  would  endeavour  to  read  himself.  Although 
every  word  that  Roswell  Gardiner  wrote  was  very  precious 
to  Mary,  the  gentle  girl  had  a  still  unopened  epistle  to  her 
self  to  peruse,  and  glad  enough  was  she  to  make  the  ex 
change.  Handing  the  deacon  his  letter,  therefore,  she 
withdrew  at  once  to  her  private  room,  in  order  to  read  her 
own. 

*  Dearest  Mary,"  said  Roswell  Gardiner,  in  this  epistle, 
"  your  uncle  will  tell  you  what  has  brought  us  into  this 
port,  and  all  things  connected  with  the  schooner.  I  have 
sent  home  more  than  $4000  worth  of  oil,  and  I  hope  my 
owner  will  forgive  the  accident  off  Currituck,  on  account 
of  this  run  of  good  luck.  In  my  opinion,  we  shall  yet 
make  a  voyage,  and  that  part  of  my  fortune  will  be  secure. 
Would  that  I  could  feel  as  sure  of  finding  you  more  dis 
posed  to  be  kind  to  me,  on  my  return !  I  read  in  your 
Bible  every  day,  Mary,  and  I  often  pray  to  God  to  enlighten 
my  mind,  if  my  views  have  been  wrong.  As  yet,  I  cannot 
flatter  myself  with  any  change,  for  my  old  opinions  appear 
rather  to  be  more  firmly  rooted  than  they  were  before  I 
sailed."  Here  poor  Mary  heaved  a  heavy  sigh,  and  wiped 
the  tears  from  her  eyes.  She  was  pained  to  a  degree  she 
could  hardly  believe  possible,  though  she  did  full  credit  to 
Roswell's  frankness.  Like  all  devout  persons,  her  faith  in 


174  THE     SEA     LIONS. 

the  efficacy  of  sacred  writ  was  strong :  and  she  so  much 
the  more  lamented  her  suitor's  continued  blindness,  because 
it  remained  after  light  had  shone  upon  it.  "Still,  Mary," 
the  letter  added,  "  as  I  have  every  human  inducement  to 
endeavour  to  be  right,  I  shall  not  throw  aside  the  book,  by 
any  means.  In  that  I  fully  believe;  our  difference  being 
in  what  the  volume  teaches.  Pray  for  me,  sweetest  girl — 
but  I  know  you  do,  and  will  continue  to  do,  as  long  as  I 
am  absent." 

"  Yes,  indeed,  Roswell,"  murmured  Mary — "  as  long  as 
you  and  I  live!" 

"  Next  to  this  one  great  concern  of  my  life,  comes  that 
which  this  man  Daggett  gives  me," — the  letter  went  on  to 
say.  "  I  hardly  know  what  to  do  under  all  the  circum 
stances.  Keep  in  his  company  much  longer  I  cannot, 
without  violating  my  duty  to  the  deacon.  Yet,  it  is  not 
easy,  in  any  sense,  to  get  rid  of  him.  He  has  stood  by  me 
so  manfully  on  all  occasions,  and  seems  so  much  disposed 
to  make  good-fellowship  of  the  voyage,  that,  did  it  depend 
on  myself  only,  I  should  at  once  make  a  bargain  with  him 
to  seal  in  company,  and  to  divide  the  spoils.  But  this  is 
now  impossible,  and  I  must  quit  him  in  some  way  or  other. 
He  outsails  me  in  most  weathers,  and  it  is  a  thing  easier 
said  than  done.  What  will  make  it  more  difficult  is  the 
growing  shortness  of  the  nights.  The  days  lengthen  fast 
now,  and  as  we  go  south  they  will  become  so  much  longer, 
that,  by  the  time  when  it  will  be  indispensable  to  separate, 
it  will  be  nearly  all  day.  The  thing  must  be  done,  how 
ever,  and  I  trust  to  luck  to  be  able  to  do  it  as  it  ought  to 
be  effected. 

"And  now,  dearest,  dearest  Mary "  But  why  should 

we  lift  the  veil  from  the  feelings  of  this  young  man,  who 
concluded  his  letter  by  pouring  out  his  whole  heart  in  a 
few  sincere  and  manly  sentences.  Mary  wept  over  them 
most  of  that  day,  perusing  and  reperusing  them,  until  her 
eyes  would  scarce  perform  their  proper  office. 

A  few  days  later  the  deacon  was  made  a  very  happy  man 
by  the  receipt  of  a  letter  from  Fish  &,  Grinnell,  notifying 
him  of  the  arrival  of  his  oil,  accompanied  by  a  most  grati 
fying  account  of  the  state  of  the  market,  and  asking  for 
instructions.  The  oil  was  disposed  of,  and  the  deacoct 


THE    SEA    LIONS.  175 

pocketed  his  portion  of  the  proceeds  as  soon  as  possible; 
eagerly  looking  for  a  new  and  profitable  investment  for  the 
avails.  Great  was  the  reputation  Roswell  Gardiner  made 
by  this  capture  of  the  two  spermaceti  whales,  and  by  send 
ing  the  proceeds  to  so  good  a  market.  In  commerce,  as  in 
war,  success  is  all  in  all,  though  in  both  success  is  nearly 
as  often  the  result  of  unforeseen  circumstances  as  of  calcu 
lations  and  wisdom.  It  is  true  there  are  a  sort  of  trade, 
and  a  sort  of  war,  in  which  prudence  and  care  may  effect 
a  great  deal,  yet  are  both  often  outstripped  by  the  random 
exertions  and  adventures  of  those  who  calculate  almost  as 
wildly  as  they  act.  Audacity,  as  the  French  term  it,  is  a 
great  quality  in  war,  and  often  achieves  more  than  the  most 
calculated  wisdom  —  nay,  it  becomes  wisdom  in  that  sort 
of  struggle;  and  we  are  far  from  being  sure  that  audacity 
is  not  sometimes  as  potent  in  trade.  At  all  events,  it  was 
esteemed  a  bold,  as  well  as  a  prosperous  exploit,  for  a  little 
schooner  like  the  Sea  Lion  of  Oyster  Pond,  to  take  a  hun 
dred-barrel  whale,  and  to  send  home  its  "  ile,"  as  the  dea 
con  always  pronounced  the  word,  in  common  with  most 
others  in  old  Suffolk. 

Long  and  anxious  months,  with  one  exception,  succeeded 
this  bright  spot  of  sunshine  in  Mary  Pratt's  solicitude  in 
behalf  of  the  absent  Roswell.  She  knew  there  was  but 
little  chance  of  hearing  from  him  again  until  he  returned 
north.  The  exception  was  a  short  letter  that  the  deacon 
received,  dated  two  weeks  later  than  that  written  from  Rio, 
in  latitude  forty-one,  or  just  as  far  south  of  the  equator  as 
Oyster  Pond  was  north  of  it,  and  nearly  fourteen  hundred 
miles  to  the  southward  of  Rio.  This  letter  was  written  in 
great  haste,  to  send  home  by  a  Pacific  trader  who  was  ac 
cidentally  met  nearer  the  coast  than  was  usual  for  such 
vessels  to  be.  It  stated  that  all  was  well ;  that  the  schooner 
of  Daggett  was  still  in  company;  and  that  Gardiner  in 
tended  to  get  "  shut"  of  her,  as  the  deacon  expressed  it,  on 
the  very  first  occasion. 

After  the  receipt  of  this  letter,  the  third  written  by  Ros 
well  Gardiner  since  he  left  home,  a  long  and  blank  interval 
of  silence  succeeded.  Then  it  was  that  months  passed 
away  in  an  anxious  and  dark  uncertainty.  Spring  followed 
winter,  summer  succeeded  to  spring,  and  autumn  came  to 


176  THESEALIONS. 

reap  the  fruits  of  all  the  previous  seasons,  without  bringing 
any  further  tidings  from  the  adventurers.  Then  winter 
made  its  second  appearance  since  the  Sea  Lion  had  sailed, 
filling  the  minds  of  the  mariners'  friends  with  sad  fore 
bodings  as  they  listened  to  the  meanings  of  the  gales  that 
accompanied  that  bleak  and  stormy  quarter  of  the  year. 
Deep  and  painful  were  the  anticipations  of  the  deacon,  in 
whom  failing  health,  and  a  near  approach  to  the  "  last  of 
earth,"  came  to  increase  the  gloom.  As  for  Mary,  youth 
and  health  sustained  her;  but  her  very  soul  was  heavy,  as 
she  pondered  on  so  long  and  uncertain  an  absence. 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

"  Safely  in  harbour 

Is  the  king's  ship ;  in  the  deep  nook,  where  once 
Thou  calledst  me  up  at  midnight  to  fetch  dew 
From  the  still  vex'd  Bermoothes,  there  she 's  hid." 

Tempest. 

THE  letter  of  Roswell  Gardiner  last  received,  bore  the 
date  of  December  10th,  1819,  or  just  a  fortnight  after  he 
had  sailed  from  Rio  de  Janeiro.  We  shall  next  present  the 
schooner  of  Deacon  Pratt  to  the  reader  on  the  18th  of  that 
month,  or  three  weeks  and  one  day  after  she  had  sailed 
from  the  capital  of  Brazil.  Early  in  the  morning  of  the 
day  last  mentioned,  the  Sea  Lion  of  Oyster  Pond  was  visi 
ble,  standing  to  the  northward,  with  the  wind  light  but 
freshening  from  the  westward,  and  in  smooth  water.  Land 
was  not  only  in  sight,  but  was  quite  near,  less  than  a  league 
distant.  Towards  this  land  the  head  of  the  schooner  had 
been  laid,  and  she  was  approaching  it  at  the  rate  of  some 
four  or  five  knots.  The  land  was  broken,  high,  of  a  most 
sterile  aspect  where  it  was  actually  to  be  seen,  and  nearly 
all  covered  with  a  light  but  melting  snow,  though  the  sea 
son  was  advanced  to  the  middle  of  the  first  month  in  sum 
mer.  The  weather  was  not  very  cold,  however,  and  there 


THE    SEA    LIONS  177 

was  a  feeling  about  it  that  promised  it  would  become  still 
milder.  The  aspect  of  the  neighbouring  land,  so  barren, 
rugged  and  inhospitable,  chilled  the  feelings,  and  gave  to 
the  scene  a  sombre  hue  which  the  weather  itself  might  not 
have  imparted.  Directly  ahead  of  the  schooner  rose  a  sort 
of  pyramid  of  broken  rocks,  which,  occupying  a  small 
island,  stood  isolated  in  a  measure,  and  some  distance  in 
advance  of  other  and  equally  ragged  ranges  of  mounta.,is, 
which  belonged  also  to  islands  detached  from  the  main 
land  thousands  of  years  before,  under  some  violent  convul 
sions  of  nature. 

It  was  quite  apparent  that  all  on  board  the  schooner  re 
garded  that  ragged  pyramid  with  lively  interest.  Most  of 
the  crew  was  collected  on  the  forecastle,  including  the 
officers,  and  all  eyes  were  fastened  on  the  ragged  pyramid 
which  they  were  diagonally  approaching.  The  principal 
spokesman  was  Stimson,  the  oldest  mariner  on  board,  and 
one  who  had  oftener  visited  those  seas  than  any  other  of 
the  crew. 

"  You  know  the  spot,  do  you,  Stephen  ?"  demanded 
Roswell  Gardiner,  with  interest. 

"  Yes,  sir,  there 's  no  mistake.  That 's  the  Horn.  Eleven 
times  have  I  doubled  it,  and  this  is  the  third  time  that  I've 
been  so  close  in  as  to  get  a  fair  sight  of  it.  Once  I  went 
inside,  as  I've  told  you,  sir." 

"  I  have  doubled  it  six  times  myself,"  said  Gardiner, 
"  but  never  saw  it  before.  Most  navigators  give  it  a  wide 
berth.  'Tis  said  to  be  the  stormiest  spot  on  the  known 
earth !" 

"That's  a  mistake,  you  may  depend  on 't,  sir.  The 
sow-westers  blow  great  guns  here-abouts,  it  is  true  enough  ; 
and  when  they  do,  sich  a  sea  comes  tumbling  in  on  that 
rock  as  man  never  seed  anywhere  else,  perhaps ;  but,  on 
the  whull,  I  'd  rather  be  close  in  here,  than  two  hundred 
miles  further  to  the  southward.  With  the  wind  at  sow- 
west,  and  heavy,  a  better  slant  might  be  made  from  the 
southern  position;  but  here  I  know  where  I  am,  and  I'd 
go  in  and  anchor,  and  wait  for  the  gale  to  blow  itself 
out." 

"  Talking  of  seas,  Captain  Gar'nor,"  observed  Hazard, 
"don't  you  think,  sir,  we  begin  to  feel  the  swell  of  the 


178  THE     SEA    LIONS. 

t 

Pacific.  Smooth  as  the  surface  of  the  waver  is,  here  is  a 
ground-swell  rolling  in  that  must  be  twelve  or  fifteen  feel 
in  height." 

"  There 's  no  doubt  of  that.  We  have  felt  the  swell  of  the 
Pacific  these  two  hours ;  no  man  can  mistake  that.  The 
Atlantic  has  no  such  waves.  This  is  an  ocean  in  reality, 
and  this  is  its  stormiest  part.  The  wind  freshens  and  hauls, 
and  I  'm  afraid  we  are  about  to  be  caught  close  in  here, 
with  a  regular  sow-west  gale." 

"  Let  it  come,  sir,  let  it  come,"  put  in  Stirnson,  again ; 
"  if  it  does,  we've  only  to  run  in  and  anchor.  I  can  stand 
pilot,  and  I  promise  to  carry  the  schooner  where  twenty 
sow-westers  will  do  her  no  harm.  What  I've  seen  done 
once,  I  know  can  be  done  again.  The  time  will  come  when 
the  Horn  will  be  a  reg'lar  harbour." 

Roswell  left  the  forecastle,  and  walked  aft,  pondering  on 
what  had  just  been  said.  His  situation  was  delicate,  and 
demanded  decision,  as  well  as  prudence.  The  manner  in 
which  Daggett  had  stuck  by  him,  ever  since  the  two  vessels 
took  their  departure  from  Block  Island,  is  known  to  the 
reader.  The  Sea  Lions  had  sailed  from  Rio  in  company, 
arid  they  had  actually  made  Staten  Land  together,  the  day 
preceding  that  on  which  we  now  bring  the  Oyster  Pond 
craft  once  more  upon  the  scene,  and  had  closed  so  near  as 
to  admit  of  a  conversation  between  the  two  masters.  I/ 
would  seem  that  Daggett  was  exceedingly  averse  to  passinj 
through  the  Straits  of  le  Maire.  An  uncle  of  his  had  been 
wrecked  there,  and  had  reported  the  passage  as  the  most 
dangerous  one  he  had  ever  encountered.  It  has  its  diffi 
culties,  no  doubt,  ;in  certain  states  of  the  wind  and  tide, 
but  Roswell  had  received  good  accounts  of  the  place  from 
Stimson,  who  had  been  through  several  times.  The  wind 
was  rather  scant  to  go  through,  and  the  weather  threatened 
to  be  thick.  As  Daggett  urged  his  reasons  for  keeping  off 
and  passing  outside  of  Staten  Land,  a  circuit  of  considera 
ble  extent,  besides  bringing  a  vessel  far  to  leeward  with  the 
prevalent  winds  of  that  region,  which  usually  blow  from 
northwest  round  to  southwest,  Roswell  was  reflecting  on 
the  opportunity  the  circumstances  afforded  of  giving  his 
consort  the  slip.  After  discussing  the  matter  for  some 
lime,  he  desired  Daggett  to  lead  on,  and  he  would  follow. 


THE    SEA    I/IONS. 

This  was  done,  though  neither  schooner  was  kept  off  until 
Roswell  got  a  good  view  of  Cape  St.  Diego,  on  Tierra  del 
Fuego,  thereby  enabling  him  to  judge  of  the  positions  of 
Jie  principal  land-marks.  Without  committing  himself 
by  any  promise,  therefore,  he  told  Daggett  to  lead  on,  and 
for  some  time  he  followed,  the  course  being  one  that  did 
not  take  him  much  out  of  the  way.  The  weather  was 
misty,  and  at  times  the  wind  blew  in  squalls.  The  last 
increased  as  the  schooners  drew  nearer  to  Staten  Land. 
Daggett,  being  about  half  a  mile  ahead,  felt  the  full  power 
of  one  particular  squall  that  came  out  of  the  ravines  with 
greater  force  than  common,  and  he  kept  away  to  increase 
his  distance  from  the  land.  At  the  same  time,  the  mist 
shut  in  the  vessels  from  each  other.  It  was  also  past  sun 
set,  and  a  dark  and  dreary  night  was  approaching.  This 
latter  fact  had  been  one  of  Daggett's  arguments  for  going 
outside.  Profiting  by  all  these  circumstances,  Roswell 
tacked,  and  stood  over  towards  Tierra  del  Fuego.  He 
knew  from  the  smoothness  of  the  water  that  an  ebb-tide 
was  running,  and  trusted  to  its  force  to  carry  him  through 
the  Straits.  He  saw  no  more  of  the  Sea  Lion  of  the  Vine 
yard.  She  continued  shut  in  by  the  mist  until  night  closed 
around  both  vessels.  When  he  got  about  mid-channel, 
Roswell  tacked  again.  By  this  time  the  current  had  sucked 
him  fairly  into  the  passage,  and  no  sooner  did  he  go  about 
than  his  movement  to  the  southward  was  very  rapid.  The 
squalls  gave  some  trouble,  but,  on  the  whole,  he  did  very 
well.  Next  morning  he  was  off  Cape  Horn,  as  described. 
By  this  expression,  it  is  generally  understood  that  a  vessel  is 
somewhere  near  the  longitude  of  that  world-renowned  cape, 
but  not  necessarily  in  sight  of  it.  Few  navigators  actually 
see  the  extremity  of  the  American  continent,  though  they 
double  the  cape,  it  being  usually  deemed  the  safest  to  pass 
well  to  the  southward.  Such  was  Daggett's  position ;  who, 
in  consequence  of  having  gone  outside  of  Staten  Land,  was 
now  necessarily  a  long  distance  to  leeward,  and  who  could 
not  hope  to  beat  up  abreast  of  the  Hermits,  even  did  .the 
wind  and  sea  favour  him,  in  less  than  twenty-four  hours. 
A  great  advantage  was  obtained  by  coming  through  the 
Straits  of  Le  Maire,  and  Roswell  felt  very  certain  that  he 
should  not  see  his  late  consort  again  that  day,  even  did  he 
16 


180  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

heave-to  for  him.  But  our  hero  had  no  idea  of  doing  any 
thing  of  the  sort.  Having  shaken  off  his  leech,  he  had  no 
wish  to  suffer  it  to  fasten  to  him  again.  It  was  solely  with 
the  intention  of  making  sure  of  this  object  that  he  thought 
of  making  a  harbour. 

In  order  that  the  reader  may  better  understand  those  in 
cidents  of  our  narrative  which  we  are  about  to  relate,  it 
may  be  well  to  say  a  word  of  the  geographical  features  of 
the  region  to  which  he  has  beea  transported,  in  fiction,  if 
not  in  fact.  At  the  southern  extremity  of  the  American  con 
tinent  is  a  cluster  of  islands,  which  are  dark,  sterile,  rocky, 
and  most  of  the  year  covered  with  snow.  Evergreens  re 
lieve  the  aspect  of  sterility,  in  places  that  are  a  little  shel 
tered,  and  there  is  a  meagre  vegetation  in  spots  that  serve 
to  sustain  animal  life.  The  first  strait  which  separates 
this  cluster  of  islands  from  the  main,  is  that  of  Magellan, 
through  which  vessels  occasionally  pass,  in  preference  to 
going  farther  south.  Then  comes  Tierra  del  Fuego,  which 
is  much  the  largest  of  all  the  islands.  To  the  southward 
of  Tierra  del  Fuego  lies  a  cluster  of  many  small  islands, 
which  bear  different  names;  though  the  group  farthest 
south  of  all,  and  which  it  is  usual  to  consider  as  the  southern 
termination  of  our  noble  continent,  but  which  is  not  on  a 
continent  at  all,  is  known  by  the  appropriate  appellation 
of  the  Hermits.  If  solitude,  and  desolation,  and  want,  and 
a  contemplation  of  some  of  the  sublimest  features  of  this 
earth,  can  render  a  spot  fit  for  a  hermitage,  these  islands 
are  very  judiciously  named.  The  one  that  is  farthest  south 
contains  the  cape  itself,  which  is  marked  by  the  ragged 
pyramid  of  rock  already  mentioned ;  placed  there  by  na 
ture,  a  never-tiring  sentinel  of  the  war  of  the  elements. 
Behind  this  cluster  of  the  Hermits  it  was  that  Stimson  ad 
vised  his  officer  to  take  refuge  against  the  approaching 
gale,  of  which  the  signs  were  now  becoming  obvious  and 
certain.  Roswell's  motive,  however,  for  listening  to  such 
advice,  was  less  to  find  a  shelter  for  his  schooner  than  to 
get  rid  of  Daggett.  For  the  gale  he  cared  but  little,  since 
he  was  a  long  way  from  the  ice,  and  could  stretch  off  the 
land  to  the  southward  into  a  waste  of  waters  that  seems  in 
terminable.  There  are  islands  to  the  southward  of  Cape 
Horn,  ,and  a  good  many  of  them  too,  though  none  very- 


THE    SEA    LIONS.  18J 

near.  It  is  now  known,  also,  by  means  of  the  toils  and 
courage  of  various  seamen,  including  those  of  the  perse 
vering  and  laborious  Wilkes,  the  most  industrious  and  the 
least  rewarded  of  all  the  navigators  who  have  ever  worked 
for  the  human  race  in  this  dangerous  and  exhausting  occu 
pation,  that  a  continent  is  there  also;  but,  at  the  period  of 
which  we  are  writing,  the  existence  of  the  Shetlands  and 
Palmer's  Land  was  the  extent  of  the  later  discoveries  in 
that  part  of  the  ocean.  After  pacing  the  quarter-deck  a  few 
minutes,  when  he  quitted  the  forecastle  as  mentioned,  Ros- 
well  Gardiner  again  went  forward  among  the  men. 

"  You  are  quite  sure  that  this  high  peak  is  the  Horn, 
Stimson  ?"  he  observed,  inquiringly. 

"  Sartain  of  it,  sir.  There  's  no  mistaking  sich  a  place, 
which,  once  seen,  is  never  forgotten.5' 

"  It  agrees  with  the  charts  and  our  reckoning,  and  I  may 
say  it  agrees  with  our  eyes  also.  Here  is  the  Pacific  Ocean, 
plain  enough,  Mr.  Hazard." 

"  So  I  think,  sir.  We  are  at  the  end  of  Ameriky,  if  it 
has  an  end  anywhere.  This  heavy  long  swell  is  an  old  ac 
quaintance,  though  I  never  was  in  close  enough  to  see  the 
land,  hereabouts,  before." 

"It  is  fortunate  we  have  one  trusty  hand  on  board  who 
can  stand  pilot.  Stimson,  I  intend  to  go  in  and  anchor, 
and  I  shall  trust  to  you  to  carry  me  into  a  snug  berth." 

"I'll  do  it,  Captain  Gar'ner,  if  the  weather  will  permit 
it/1  returned  the  seaman,  with  an  unpretending  sort  of 
confidence  that  spoke  well  for  his  ability. 

Preparations  were  now  commenced  in  earnest,  to  come 
to.  It.  was  time  that  some  steady  course  should  be  adopted, 
as  the  wind  was  getting  up,  and  the  schooner  was  rapidly 
approaching  the  land.  In  half  an  hour  the  Sea  Lion  was 
bending  to  a  little  gale,  with  her  canvass  reduced  to  close- 
reefed  mainsail  and  foresail,  and  the  bonnet  off  her  jib. 
The  sea  was  fast  getting  up,  though  it  came  in  long,  and 
mountain-like.  Roswell  dreaded  the  mist.  Could  he  pass 
through  the  narrow  channels  that  Stimson  had  described  to 
him,  with  a  clear  sky,  one  half  of  his  causes  of  anxiety 
would  be  removed.  But  the  wind  was  not  a  clear  one,  and 
he  felt  that  no  time  was  to  be  lost. 

It  required  great  nerve  to  approach  a  coast  like  that  of 


182  THE     SEA     LIONS. 

Cape  Horn  in  such  weather.  As  the  schooner  got  nearer 
to  the  real  cape,  the  sight  of  the  seas  tumbling  in  and 
breaking  on  its  ragged  rock,  and  the  hollow  roaring  sound 
they  made,  actually  became  terrific.  To  add  to  the  awe 
inspired  in  the  breast  of  even  the  most  callous-minded  man 
on  board,  came  a  doubt  whether  the  schooner  could  wea 
ther  a  certain  point  of  rock,  the  western  extremity  of  the 
island,  after  she  had  got  so  far  into  a  bight  as  to  render 
waring  questionable,  if  not  impossible.  Every  one  now 
looked  grave  and  anxious.  Should  the  schooner  go  ashore 
in  such  a  place,  a  single  minute  would  suffice  to  break  hei 
to  pieces,  and  not  a  soul  could  expect  to  be  saved.  Ros- 
well  was  exceedingly  anxious,  though  he  remained  cool. 

"  The  tides  and  eddies  about  these  rocks,  and  in  so  high 
a  latitude,  sweep  a  vessel  like  chips,"  he  said  to  his  chief 
mate.  "  We  have  been  set  in  here  by  an  eddy,  and  a  ter 
rible  place  it  is." 

"All  depends  on  our  gears  holding  on,  sir,"  was  the  an 
swer,  "  with  a  little  on  Providence.  Just  watch  the  point 
ahead,  Captain  Gar'ner;  though  we  are  not  actually  to 
leeward  of  it,  see  with  what  a  drift  we  have  drawn  upon  it ! 
The  manner  in  which  these  seas  roll  in  from  the  sow-west 
is  terrific !  No  craft  can  go  to  windward  against  them." 

This  remark  of  Hazard's  was  very  just.  The  seas  that 
came  down  upon  the  cape  resembled  a  rolling  prairie  in 
their  outline.  A  single  wave  would  extend  a  quarter  of  a 
mile  from  trough  to  trough,  and  as  it  passed  beneath  the 
schooner,  lifting  her  high  in  the  air,  it  really  seemed  as  if 
the  glancing  water  would  sweep  her  away  in  its  force.  But 
human  art  had  found  the  means  to  counteract  even  this 
imposing  display  of  the  power  of  nature.  The  little  schooner 
rode  over  the  billows  like  a  duck,  and  when  she  sank  be 
tween  two  of  them,  it  was  merely  to  rise  again  on  a  new 
summit,  and  breast  the  gale  gallantly.  It  was  the  current 
that  menaced  the  greatest  danger ;  for  that,  unseen  except 
in  its  fruits,  was  clearly  setting  the  little  craft  to  leeward, 
and  bodily  towards  the  rocks.  By  this  time  our  adventurers 
were  so  near  the  land  that  they  almost  gave  up  hope  itself. 
Cape  Hatteras  and  its  much-talked-of  dangers,  seemed  a 
place  of  refuge  compared  to  that  in  which  our  navigators 
now  found  themselves.  Could  the  deepest  bellowings  of 


THE     SEA    LIONS.  183 

ten  thousand  bulls  be  united  in  a  common  roar,  the  noise 
would  not  have  equalled  that  of  the  hollow  sound  which 
issued  from  a  sea  as  it  went  into  some  cavern  of  the  rocks. 
Then,  the  spray  filled  the  air  like  driving  rain,  and  there 
were  minutes  when  the  cape,  though  so  frightfully  near, 
was  hid  from  view  by  the  vapour. 

At  this  precise  moment,  the  Sea  Lion  was  less  than  a 
quarter  of  a  mile  to  windward  of  the  point  she  was 
struggling  to  weather,  and  towards  which  she  was  driv 
ing  under  a  treble  impetus;  that  of  the  wind,  acting 
on  her  sails,  and  pressing  her  ahead  at  the  rate  of  fully 
five  knots,  for  the  craft  was  kept  a  rap  full ;  that  of  the 
eddy,  or  current,  and  that  of  the  rolling  waters.  No 
man  spoke,  for  each  person  felt  that  the  crisis  was  one 
in  which  silence  was  a  sort  of  homage  to  the  Deity. 
Some  prayed  prirately,  and  all  gazed  on  the  low  rocky 
point  that  it  was  indispensable  to  pass,  to  avoid  destruction. 
There  was  one  favourable  circumstance;  the  water  was 
known  to  be  deep,  quite  close  to  the  iron-bound  coast,  and 
it  was  seldom  that  any  danger  existed,  that  it  was  not  visi 
ble  to  the  eye.  This,  Roswell  knew  from  Stimson's  ac 
counts,  as  well  as  from  those  of  other  mariners,  and  he  saw 
that  the  fact  was  of  the  last  importance  to  him.  Should 
ne  be  able  to  weather  the  point  ahead,  that  which  termi 
nated  at  the  rnouth  of  the  passage  that  led  within  the  Her 
mits,  it  was  now  certain  it  could  be  done  only  by  going 
fearfully  near  the  rocks. 

Roswell  Gardiner  took  his  station  between  the  knight- 
heads,  beckoning  to  Stimson  to  come  near  him.  At  the 
same  time,  Hazard  himself  went  to  the  helm. 

"  Do  you  remember  this  place  ?"  asked  the  young  mas 
ter  of  the  old  seaman. 

f<  This  is  the  spot,  sir ;  and  if  we  can  round  the  rocky 
point  ahead,  I  will  take  you  to  a  safe  anchorage.  Our  drift 
is  awful,  or  we  are  in  an  eddy  tide  here,  sir !" 

"It  is  the  eddy,"  answered  Roswell,  calmly,  "though 
our  drift  is  not  trifling.  This  is  getting  frightfully  near  to 
that  point !" 

"  Hold  on,  sir — it's  our  only  chance; — hold  on,  and  we 
may  rub  and  go." 

"  If  we  rub,  we  are  lost ;  that  is  certain  enough.  Should 
16* 


184  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

we  get  by  this  first  point,  there  is  another,  a  snort  distance 
beyond  it,  which  must  certainly  fetch  us  up,  I  fear.  See — 
it  opens  more,  as  we  draw  ahead." 

Stimson  saw  the  new  danger,  and  fully  appreciated  it. 
He  did  not  speak,  however ;  for,  to  own  the  truth,  he  now 
abandoned  all  hope,  and,  being  a  piously  inclined  person, 
he  was  privately  addressing  himself  to  God.  Every  man 
on  board  was  fully  aware  of  the  character  of  this  new  dan 
der,  and  all  seemed  to  forget  that  of  the  nearest  point  of 
rock,  towards  which  they  were  now  wading  with  portentous 
speed.  That  point  might  be  passed  ;  there  was  a  little  hope 
there ;  but  as  to  the  point  a  quarter  of  a  mile  beyond,  with 
the  leeward  set  of  the  schooner,  the  most  ignorant  hand  on 
board  saw  how  unlikely  it  was  that  they  should  get  by  it. 

An  imposing  silence  prevailed  in  the  schooner,  as  she 
came  abreast  of  the  first  rock.  It  was  about  fifty  fathoms 
under  the  lee  bow,  and,  as  to  that  spot,  all  depended  on  the 
distance  outward  that  the  dangers  thrust  themselves.  This 
it  was  impossible  to  see  amid  the  chaos  of  waters  produced 
by  the  collision  between  the  waves  and  the  land.  Roswell 
fastened  his  eyes  on  objects  ahead,  to  note  the  rate  of  his 
leeward  set,  and,  with  a  seaman's  quickness,  he  noted  the 
first  change. 

"  She  feels  the  under-tow,  Stephen,"  he  said,  in  a  voice 
so  compressed  as  to  seem  to  come  out  of  the  depths  of  his 
chest,  "  and  is  breasted  up  to  windward !" 

"  What  means  that  sudden  luff,  sir?  Mr.  Hazard  must 
keep  a  good  full,  or  we  shall  have  no  chance." 

Gardiner  looked  aft,  and  saw  that  the  mate  was  bearing 
the  helm  well  up,  as  if  he  met  with  much  resistance.  The 
truth  then  flashed  upon  him,  and  he  shouted  out — 

"All 's  well,  boys !  God  be  praised,  we  have  caught  the 
ebb-tide,  under  our  lee-bow !" 

These  few  words  explained  the  reason  of  the  change. 
Instead  of  setting  to  leeward,  the  schooner  was  now  meet 
ing  a  powerful  tide  of  some  four  or  five  knots,  which  hawsed 
her  up  to  windward  with  irresistible  force.  As  if  conscious 
of  the  danger  she  was  in,  the  tight  little  craft  receded  from 
the  rocks  as  she  shot  ahead,  and  rounded  that  second  point, 
which,  a  minute  before,  had  appeared  to  be  placed  there 
purposely  to  destroy  her.  It  was  handsomely  doubled,  at 


THE    SEA     LIONS.  185 

the  safe  distance  of  a  hundred  fathoms.  Roswell  believed 
he  might  now  beat  his  schooner  off  the  land  far  enough  to 
double  the  cape  altogether,  could  he  but  keep  her  in  that 
current.  It  doubtless  expended  itself,  however,  a  short  dis 
tance  in  the  offing,  as  its  waters  diffused  themselves  on  the 
breast  of  the  ocean ;  and  it  was  this  diffusion  of  the  element 
that  produced  the  eddy  which  had  proved  so  nearly  fatal. 

In  ten  minutes  after  striking  the  tide,  the  schooner 
opened  the  passage  fairly,  and  was  kept  away  to  enter  it. 
Notwithstanding  it  blew  so  heavily,  the  rate  of  sailing,  by 
the  land,  did  not  exceed  five  knots.  This  was  owing  to  the 
great  strength  of  the  tide,  which  sometimes  rises  and  falls 
thirty  feet,  in  high  latitudes  and  narrow  waters.  Stimson 
now  showed  he  was  a  man  to  be  relied  on.  Conning  the 
craft  intelligently,  he  took  her  in  behind  the  island  on 
which  the  cape  stands,  luffed  her  up  into  a  tiny  cove,  and 
made  a  cast  of  the  lead.  There  were  fifty  fathoms  of  water, 
with  a  bottom  of  mud.  With  the  certainty  that  there  was 
enough  of  the  element  to  keep  him  clear  of  the  ground  at 
low  water,  and  that  his  anchors  would  hold,  Roswell  made 
a  flying  moor,  and  veered  out  enough  cable  to  render  his 
vessel  secure. 

Here,  then,  was  the  Sea  Lion  of  Oyster  Pond,  that  craft 
which  the  reader  had  seen  lying  at  Deacon  Pratt's  wharf, 
only  three  short  months  before,  safely  anchored  in  a  nook 
of  the  rocks  behind  Cape  Horn.  No  navigator  but  a  sealer 
would  have  dreamed  of  carrying  his  vessel  into  such  a  place, 
but  it  is  a  part  of  their  calling  to  poke  about  in  channels 
and  passages  where  no  one  else  has  ever  been.  It  was  in 
this  way  that  Stimson  had  learned  to  know  where  to  find 
his  present  anchorage.  The  berth  of  the  schooner  was 
perfectly  snug,  and  entirely  land-locked.  The  tremendous 
swell  that  was  rolling  in  on  the  outside,  caused  the  waters 
to  rise  and  fall  a  little  within  the  passage,  but  there  was  no 
strain  upon  the  cables  in  consequence.  Neither  did  the 
rapid  tides  affect  the  craft,  which  lay  in  an  eddy  that  merely 
kept  her  steady.  The  gale  came  howling  over  the  Hermits, 
but  was  so  much  broken  by  the  rocks  as  to  do  little  more 
than  whistle  through  the  cordage  and  spars  aloft. 

Three  days,  and  as  many  nights,  did  the  gale  from  the 
south-west  continue.  The  fourth  day  there  was  a  change, 


186  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

the  wind  coming  from  the  eastward.  Roswell  would  now 
have  gone  out,  had  it  not  been  for  the  apprehension  of  fall 
ing  in  with  Daggett  again.  Having  at  length  gotten  rid 
of  that  pertinacious  companion,  it  would  have  been  an  act 
of  great  weakness  to  throw  himself  blindly  in  his  way  once 
more.  It  was  possible  that  Daggett  might  not  suppose  he 
had  been  left  intentionally,  in  which  case,  he  would  be  very 
apt  to  look  for  his  lost  consort  in  the  vicinity  of  the  cape. 
As  for  the  gale,  it  might,  or  it  might  not,  have  blown  him 
to  leeward.  A  good  deal  would  depend  on  the  currents, 
and  his  distance  to  the  southward.  Near  the  land,  Gardi- 
diner  believed  the  currents  favoured  a  vessel  doubling  it, 
going  west;  and  if  Daggett  was  also  aware  of  this  fact,  it 
might  induce  him  to  keep  as  near  the  spot  as  possible. 

Time  was  very  precious  to  our  sealers,  the  season  being 
so  short  in  the  high  latitudes.  Still,  they  were  a  little  in 
advance  of  their  calculations,  having  got  off  the  Horn 
fully  ten  days  sooner  than  they  had  hoped  to  be  there. 
Nearly  the  whole  summer  was  before  them,  and  there  was 
the  possibility  of  their  even  being  too  soon  for  the  loosening 
of  the  ice  further  south.  The  wind  was  the  strongest  in 
ducement  to  go  out,  for  the  point  to  which  our  adventurers 
were  bound  lay  a  considerable  distance  to  the  westward, 
and  fair  breezes  were  not  to  be  neglected.  Under  all  the 
circumstances,  however,  it  was  decided  to  remain  within 
the  passage  one  day  longer,  and  this  so  much  the  more, 
because  Hazard  had  discovered  some  signs  of  sea-elephants 
frequenting  an  island  at  no  great  distance.  The  boats  were 
lowered  accordingly,  and  the  mate  went  in  one  direction, 
while  the  master  pulled  up  to  the  rocks,  and  landed  on  the 
Hermit,  or  the  island  which  should  bear  that  name,  par 
excellence,  being  that  in  which  the  group  terminates. 

Taking  Stimson  with  him,  to  carry  a  glass,  and  armed 
with  an  old  lance  as  a  pike-pole,  to  aid  his  efforts,  Roswell 
Gardiner  now  commenced  the  ascent  of  the  pyramid  already 
mentioned.  It  was  ragged,  and  offered  a  thousand  obstacles, 
but  none  that  vigour  and  resolution  could  not  overcome 
After  a  few  minutes  of  violent  exertion,  and  by  helping 
each  other  in  difficult  places,  both  Roswell  and  Stimson 
succeeded  in  placing  themselves  on  the  summit  of  the  ele 
vation,  which  was  an  irregular  peak.  The  height  was 


THE     SEA     LIONS.  187 

considerable,  and  gave  an  extended  view  of  the  adjacent 
islands,  as  well  as  of  the  gloomy  and  menacing  ocean  to 
the  southward.  The  earth,  probably,  does  not  contain  a 
more  remarkable  sentinel  than  this  pyramid  on  which  our 
hero  had  now  taken  his  station.  There  it  stood,  actually 
the  Ultima  Thule  ot  this  vast  continent,  or,  what  was  much 
the  same,  so  closely  united  to  it  as  to  seem  a  part  of  our 
own  moiety  of  the  globe,  looking  out  on  the  broad  expanse 
of  waters.  The  eye  saw,  to  the  right,  the  Pacific ;  in  front 
was  the  Southern,  or  Antarctic  Ocean ;  and  to  the  left  was 
the  great  Atlantic.  For  several  minutes,  both  Roswell  and 
Stephen  sat  mute,  gazing  on  this  grand  spectacle.  By 
turning  their  faces  north,  they  beheld  the  high  lands  of 
Terra  del  Fuego,  of  which  many  of  the  highest  peaks  were 
covered  with  snow.  The  pyramid  on  which  they  were, 
however,  was  no  longer  white  with  the  congealed  rain,  but 
stood,  stern  and  imposing,  in  its  native  brown.  The  out 
lines  of  all  the  rocks,  and  the  shores  of  the  different  islands, 
had  an  appearance  of  volcanic  origin,  though  the  rocks 
themselves  told  a  somewhat  different  story.  The  last  was 
principally  of  trap  formation.  Cape  pigeons,  gulls,  petrels, 
and  albatross  were  wheeling  about  in  the  air,  while  the 
rollers  that  still  came  in  on  this  noble  sea-wall  were  really 
terrific.  Distant  thunder  wants  the  hollow,  bellowing  sound 
that  these  waves  made  when  brought  in  contact  with  the 
shores.  Roswell  fancied  that  it  was  like  a  groan  of  the 
mighty  Pacific,  at  finding  its  progress  suddenly  checked. 
The  spray  continued  to  fly,  and,  much  of  the  time,  the  air 
below  his  elevated  seat  was  filled  with  vapour. 

As  soon  as  our  young  master  had  taken  in  the  grander 
features  of  this  magnificent  view,  his  eyes  sought  the  Sea 
Lion  of  Martha's  Vineyard.  There  she  was,  sure  enough, 
at  a  distance  of  only  a  couple  of  leagues,  and  apparently 
standing  directly  for  the  Cape.  Could  it  be  possible  that 
Daggett  suspected  his  mano3uvre,  and  was  coming  in  search 
of  him,  at  the  precise  spot  in  which  he  had  taken  shelter? 
As  respects  the  vessel,  there  was  no  question  as  to  her  cha 
racter.  From  the  elevation  at  which  he  was  placed,  Ros 
well,  aided  by  the  glass,  had  no  difficulty  in  making  her 
out,  and  in  recognising  her  rig,  form,  and  character.  Stim- 
son  also  examined  her,  and  knew  her  to  be  the  schooner, 


188  THE     SEA     LIONS. 

On  that  vast  and  desolate  set,  she  resembled  a  speck,  but 
the  art  of  man  had  enabled  those  she  held  to  guide  her 
safely  through  the  tempest,  and  bring  her  up  to  her  goal, 
in  a  time  that  really  seemed  miraculous  for  the  circum 
stances. 

"  If  we  had  thought  of  it,  Captain  Gar'ner,"  said  Stephen, 
"  we  might  have  brought  up  an  ensign,  and  set  it  on  these 
rocks,  by  way  of  letting  the  Vineyarders  know  where  we 
are  to  be  found.  But  we  can  always  go  out  and  meet  them, 
should  this  wind  stand." 

"  Which  is  just  what  I  have  no  intention  of  doing,  Ste 
phen.  I  came  in  here,  on  purpose  to  get  rid  of  that  schoo 
ner." 

"You  surprise  me,  sir!  A  consort  is  no  bad  thing, 
when  a  craft  is  a-sealin'  in  a  high  latitude.  The  ice  makes 
such  ticklish  times,  that,  for  me,  I  'm  always  glad  to  know 
there  is  such  a  chance  for  taking  a  fellow  off,  should  there 
happen  to  be  a  wrack." 

"All  that  is  very  true,  but  there  are  reasons  which  may 
tell  against  it.  1  have  heard  of  some  islands  where  seals 
abound,  and  a  consort  is  not  quite  so  necessary  to  take 
them,  as  when  one  is  wrecked." 

"  That  alters  the  case,  Captain  Gar'ner.  Nobody  is 
obliged  to  tell  of  his  sealing  station.  I  was  aboard  one  of 
the  very  first  craft  that  found  out  that  the  South  Shetlands 
was  a  famous  place  for  seals,  and  no  one  among  us  thought 
it  necessary  to  tell  it  to  all  the  world.  Some  men  are  weak 
enough  to  put  sich  discoveries  in  the  newspapers ;  but,  for 
my  part,  I  think  it  quite  enough  to  put  them  in  the  log." 

"  That  schooner  must  have  the  current  with  her,  she 
comes  down  so  fast.  She'll  be  abreast  of  the  Horn  in  half 
an  hour  longer,  Stephen.  We  will  wait,  and  see  what  she 
would  be  at." 

Gardiner's  prediction  was  true.  In  half  an  hour,  the 
Sea  Lion  of  Holmes'  Hole  glided  past  the  rocky  pyramid 
of  the  Horn,  distant  from  it  less  than  a  mile.  Had  it  been 
the  object  of  her  commander  to  pass  into  the  Pacific,  he 
might  have  done  so  with  great  apparent  ease.  Even  with 
a  south-west  wind,  that  which  blows  fully  half  the  time  in 
those  seas,  it  would  have  been  in  his  power  to  lay  past  the 
islands,  and  soon  get  before  it.  A  north-east  course,  with 


THE     SEA     LIONS.  189 

a  little  offing,  will  clear  the  islands,  and  when  a  vessel  gets 
as  far  north  as  the  main  land,  it  would  take  her  off  the 
coast. 

But  Daggett  had  no  intention  of  doing  anything  of  the 
sort.  He  was  looking  for  his  consort,  which  he  had  hoped 
to  find  somewhere  near  the  cape.  Disappointed  in  this 
expectation,  after  standing  far  enough  west  to  make  certain 
nothing  was  in  sight  in  that  quarter,  he  hauled  up  on  an 
easy  bowline,  and  stood  to  the  southward.  Roswell  was 
right  glad  to  see  this,  inasmuch  as  it  denoted  ignorance  of 
the  position  of  the  islands  he  sought.  They  lay  much  far 
ther  to  the  westward ;  and  no  sooner  was  he  sure  of  the 
course  steered  by  the  other  schooner,  than  he  hastened 
down  to  the  boat,  in  order  to  get  his  own  vessel  under  way, 
to  profit  by  the  breeze. 

Two  hours  later,  the  Sea  Lion  of  Oyster  Pond  glanced 
through  the  passage  which  led  into  the  ocean,  on  an  ebb 
tide.  By  that  time,  the  other  vessel  had  disappeared  in  the 
southern  board;  and  Gardiner  came  out  upon  the  open 
waters  again,  boldly,  and  certain  of  his  course.  All  sail 
was  set,  and  the  little  craft  slipped  away  from  the  land  with 
the  ease  of  an  aquatic  bird,  that  is  plying  its  web-feet. 
Studding-sails  were  set,  and  the  pyramid  of  the  Horn  soon 
began  to  lower  in  the  distance,  as  the  schooner  receded. 
When  night  closed  over  the  rolling  waters,  it  was  no  longer 
risible,  the  vessel  having  fairly  entered  the  Antarctic  Ocean, 
if  anything  north  of  the  circle  can  properly  so  be  termed. 


190 


THE    SEA    LIONS 


CHAPTER  XIV. 


"All  gone  !  'tis  ours  the  goodly  land 

Look  round  —  the  heritage  behold  ; 
Go  forth  —  upon  the  mountain  stand  ; 
Then,  if  you  can,  be  cold." 


IT  was  an  enterprising  and  manly  thing  for  a  little  vessel 
like  the  Sea  Lion  to  steer  with  an  undeviating  course  into 
the  mysterious  depths  of  the  antarctic  circle  —  ^mysterious, 
far  more  in  that  day,  than  at  the  present  hour.  But  the 
American  sealer  rarely  hesitates.  He  has  very  little  science, 
few  charts,  and  those  oftener  old  than  new,  knows  little  of 
what  is  going  on  among  the  savans  of  the  earth,  though  his 
ear  is  ever  open  to  the  lore  pf  men  like  himself,  and  he  has 
his  mind  stored  with  pictures  of  islands  and  continents  that 
would  seem  to  have  been  formed  for  no  other  purpose  than 
to  meet  the  wants  of  the  race  of  animals  it  is  his  business 
to  pursue  and  to  capture.  Cape  Horn  and  its  vicinity  have 
so  long  been  frequented  by  this  class  of  men,  that  they  are 
at  home  among  their  islands,  rocks,  currents  and  sterility; 
but,  to  the  southward  of  the  Horn  itself,  all  seemed  a  waste. 
At  the  time  of  which  we  are  writing,  much  less  was  known 
of  the  antarctic  regions  than  is  known  to-day;  and  even  now 
our  knowledge  is  limited  to  a  few  dreary  outlines,  in  which 
barrenness  and  ice  compete  for  the  mastery.  Wilkes,  and 
his  competitors,  have  told  us  that  a  vast  frozen  continent 
exists  in  that  quarter  of  the  globe;  but  even  their  daring 
and  perseverance  have  not  been  able  to  determine  more 
than  the  general  fact. 

We  should  be  giving  an  exaggerated  and  false  idea  of 
Roswell  Gardiner's  character,  did  we  say  that  he  steered 
into  that  great  void  of  the  southern  ocean  in  a  total  indif 
ference  to  his  destination  and  objects.  Very  much  the  re 
verse  was  his  state  of  mind,  as  he  saw  the  high  land  of  the 


THE     SEA     LIONS.  191 

cape  sink,  as  it  might  be  foot  by  foot,  into  the  ocean,  and 
then  lost  sight  of  it  altogether.  Although  the  weather  was 
fine  for  the  region,  it  was  dark  and  menacing.  Such,  in 
deed,  is  usually  the  case  in  that  portion  of  this  globe,  which 
appears  to  be  the  favourite  region  of  the  storms.  Although 
the  wind  was  no  more  than  a  good  breeze,  and  the  ocean 
was  but  little  disturbed,  there  were  those  symptoms  in  the 
atmosphere  and  in  the  long  ground-swells  that  came  rolling 
in  from  the  southwest,  that  taught  the  mariner  the  cold 
lessons  of  caution.  We  believe  that  heavier  gales  of  wind 
at  sea  are  encountered  in  the  warm  than  in  the  cold  months  ; 
but  there  is  something  so  genial  in  the  air  of  the  ocean 
during  summer,  and  something  so  chilling  and  repulsive  in 
the  rival  season,  that  most  of  us  fancy  that  the  currents  of 
air  correspond  in  strength  with  the  fall  of  the  mercury. 
Roswell  knew  better  than  this,  it  is  true;  but  he  also  fully 
understood  where  he  was,  and  what  he  was  about.  As  a 
sealer,  he  had  several  times  penetrated  as  far  south  as  the 
ne  plus  ultra  of  Cook ;  but  it  had  ever  before  been  in 
subordinate  situations.  This  was  the  first  time  in  which 
he  had  the  responsibility  of  command  thrown  on  himself, 
and  it  was  no  more  than  natural  that  he  should  feel  the 
weight  of  this  new  burthen.  So  long  as  the  Sea  Lion  of 
the  Vineyard  was  in  sight,  she  had  presented  a  centre  of 
interest  and  concern.  To  get  rid  of  her  had  been  his  first 
care,  and  almost  absorbing  object ;  but,  now  that  she  seem 
ed  to  be  finally  thrown  out  of  his  wake,  there  remained  the 
momentous  and  closely  approaching  difficulties  of  the  main 
adventure  directly  before  his  eyes.  RosweJl,  therefore,  was 
thoughtful  and  grave,  his  countenance  offering  no  bad  re 
flection  of  the  sober  features  of  the  atmosphere  and  the 
ocean. 

Although  the  season  was  that  of  summer,  and  the  wea 
ther  was  such  as  is  deemed  propitious  in  the  neighbour 
hood  of  Cape  Horn,  a  feeling  of  uncertainty  prevailed  over 
every  other  sensation.  To  the  southward  a  cold  mistiness 
veiled  the  view,  and  every  mile  the  schooner  advanced  ap 
peared  like  penetrating  deeper  and  deeper  into  regions  that 
nature  had  hitherto  withheld  from  the  investigation  of  the 
mariner.  Ice,  and  its  dangers,  were  known  to  exist  a  few 
degrees  farther  in  that  direction ;  but  islands  also  had  been 
17 


192  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

discovered,  and  turned  to  good  account  by  the  enterprise 
of  the  sealers. 

It  was  truly  a  great  thing  for  the  Sea  Lion  of  Oyster 
Pond  to  have  thrown  off  her  namesake  of  the  Vineyard.  It 
is  true  both  vessels  were  still  in  the  same  sea,  with  a  possi 
bility  of  again  meeting ;  but,  Roswell  Gardiner  was  steering 
onward  towards  a  haven  designated  in  degrees  and  minutes, 
while  the  other  craft  was  most  probably  left  to  wander  in 
uncertainty  in  that  remote  and  stormy  ocean.  Our  hero 
thought  there  was  now  very  little  likelihood  of  his  again 
falling  in  with  his  late  consort,  and  this  so  much  the  more, 
because  the  islands  he  sought  were  not  laid  down  in  the 
vicinity  of  any  other  known  land,  and  were  consequently 
out  of  the  usual  track  of  the  sealers.  This  last  circum 
stance  was  fully  appreciated  by  our  young  navigator,  and 
gave  him  confidence  of  possessing  its  treasures  to  himself, 
could  he  only  find  the  place  where  nature  had  hid  them. 

When  the  sun  went  down  in  that  vast  waste  of  water 
which  lies  to  the  southward  of  this  continent,  the  little  Sea 
Lion  had  fairly  lost  sight  of  land,  and  was  riding  over  the 
long  southwestern  ground-swell  like  a  gull  that  holds  its 
way  steadily  towards  its  nest.  For  many  hours  her  course 
had  not  varied  half  a  point,  being  as  near  as  possible  to 
south-southwest,  which  kept  her  a  little  off  the  wind.  No 
sooner,  however,  did  night  come  to  shut  in  the  view,  than 
Roswell  Gardiner  went  aft  to  the  man  at  the  helm,  and  or 
dered  him  to  steer  to  the  southward,  as  near  as  the  breeze 
would  conveniently  allow.  This  was  a  material  change  in 
the  direction  of  the  vessel,  and,  should  the  present  breeze 
stand,  would  probably  place  her,  by  the  return  of  light,  a 
good  distance  to  the  eastward  of  the  point  she  would  other 
wise  have  reached.  Hitherto,  it  had  been  Roswell's  aim  to 
drop  his  consort;  but,  now  it  was  dark,  and  so  much  time 
had  already  passed  and  been  improved  since  the  other 
schooner  was  last  seen,  he  believed  he  might  venture  to 
steer  in  the  precise  direction  he  desired  to  go.  The  season 
is  so  short  in  those  seas,  that  every  hour  is  precious,  and 
no  more  variation  from  a  real  object  could  be  permitted 
than  circumstances  imperiously  required.  It  was  now 
generally  understood  that  the  craft  was  making  the  best  of 
her  way  towards  her  destined  sealing-ground, 


THE    SEA    LIONS.  193 

Independently  of  the  discoveries  of  the  regular  explorers, 
a  great  deal  of  information  has  been  obtained  from  the 
sealers  themselves  within  the  present  century,  touching  the 
antarctic  seas.  It  is  thought  that  many  a  headland,  and 
various  islands,  that  have  contributed  their  shares  in  pro 
curing  the  accolades  for  different  European  navigators, 
were  known  to  the  adventurers  from  Stonington  and  other 
by-ports  of  this  country,  long  before  science  ever  laid  its 
eyes  upon  them,  or  monarchs  their  swords  on  the  shoulders 
of  their  secondary  discoverers. 

That  divers  islands  existed  in  this  quarter  of  the  ocean 
was  a  fact  recognised  in  geography  long  before  the  Sea 
Lion  was  thought  of;  probably  before  her  young  master 
was  actually  born ;  but  the  knowledge  generally  possessed 
on  the  subject  was  meagre  and  unsatisfactory.  In  particu 
lar  cases,  nevertheless,  this  remark  would  not  apply,  there 
being  at  that  moment  on  board  our  little  schooner  several 
mariners  who  had  often  visited  the  South  Shetlands,  New 
Georgia,  Palmer's  Land,  and  other  known  places  in  those 
seas.  Not  one  of  them  all,  however,  had  ever  heard  of 
any  island  directly  south  of  the  present  position  of  the 
schooner. 

No  material  change  occurred  during  the  night,  or  in  the 
course  of  the  succeeding  day,  the  little  Sea  Lion  indus 
triously  holding  her  way  toward  the  south  pole;  making 
very  regularly  her  six  knots  each  hour.  By  the  time  she 
was  thirty-six  hours  from  the  Horn,  Gardiner  believed  him 
self  to  be  fully  three  degrees  to  the  southward  of  it,  and 
consequently  some  distance  within  the  parallel  of  sixty  de 
grees  south.  Palmer's  Land,  with  its  neighbouring  islands, 
would  have  been  near,  had  riot  the  original  course  carried 
the  schooner  so  far  to  the  westward.  As  it  was,  no  one 
could  say  what  lay  before  them. 

The  third  day  out,  the  wind  hauled,  and  it  blew  heavily 
from  the  north-east.  This  gave  the  adventurers  a  great  run. 
The  blink  of  ice  was  shortly  seen,  and  soon  after  ice  itself, 
drifting  about  in  bergs.  The  floating  hills  were  grand  ob 
jects  to  the  eye,  rolling  and  wallowing  in  the  seas;  but 
they  were  much  worn  and  melted  by  the  wash  of  the  ocean, 
and  comparatively  of  greatly  diminished  size.  It  was  now 
absolutely  necessary  to  lose  most  of  the  hours  of  darkness 


194  THE     SEA     LIONS. 

it  being  much  too  dangerous  to  run  in  the  night.  The  great 
barrier  of  ice  was  known  to  be  close  at  hand ;  and  Cook's 
"  Ne  Plus  Ultra,"  at  that  time  the  great  boundary  of  ant 
arctic  navigation,  was  near  the  parallel  of  latitude  to  which 
the  schooner  had  reached.  The  weather,  however,  con 
tinued  very  favourable,  and  after  the  blow  from  the  north 
east,  the  wind  came  from  the  south,  chill,  and  attended 
with  flurries  of  snow,  but  sufficiently  steady  and  not  so 
fresh  as  to  compel  our  adventurers  to  carry  very  short  sail. 
The  smoothness  of  the  water  would  of  itself  have  announced 
the  vicinity  of  ice :  not  only  did  Gardiner's  calculations 
tell  him  as  much  as  this,  but  his  eyes  confirmed  their  re 
sults.  In  the  course  of  the  fifth  day  out,  on  several  occa 
sions  when  the  weather  cleared  a  little,  glimpses  were  had 
of  the  ice  in  long  mountainous  walls,  resembling  many  of 
the  ridges  of  the  Alps,  though  moving  heavily  under  the 
heaving  and  setting  of  the  restless  waters.  Dense  fogs, 
from  time  to  time,  clouded  the  whole  view,  and  the  schooner 
was  compelled,  more  than  once  that  day,  to  heave-to,  in 
order  to  avoid  running  on  the  sunken  masses  of  ice,  or 
fields,  of  which  many  of  vast  size  now  began  to  make  their 
appearance. 

Notwithstanding  the  dangers  that  surrounded  our  adven 
turers,  they  were  none  of  them  so  insensible  to  the  sublime 
powers  of  nature  as  to  withhold  their  admiration  from  the 
many  glorious  objects  which  that  lone  and  wild  scene  pre 
sented.  The  ice-bergs  were  of  all  the  hues  of  the  rainbow, 
as  the  sunlight  gilded  their  summits  or  sides,  or  they  were 
left  shaded  by  the  interposition  of  dark  and  murky  clouds. 
There  were  instances  when  certain  of  the  huge  frozen 
masses  even  appeared  to  be  quite  black,  in  particular  posi 
tions  and  under  peculiar  lights;  while  others,  at  the  same 
instant,  were  gorgeous  in  their  gleams  of  emerald  and 
gold! 

The  aquatic  birds,  also,  had  now  become  numerous 
again.  Penguins  were  swimming  about,  filling  the  air  with 
their  discordant  cries,  while  there  was  literally  no  end  of 
the  cape-pigeons  and  petrels.  Albatrosses,  too,  helped  to 
make  up  the  picture  of  animated  nature,  while  whales  were 
often  heard  blowing  in  the  adjacent  waters.  Gardiner  saw 
many  signs  of  the  proximity  of  land,  and  began  to  hope  he 


THE    SEA    LIONS.  195 

should  yet  actually  discover  the  islands  laid  down  on  his 
chart,  as  their  position  had  been  given  by  Daggett. 

In  that  high  latitude  a  degree  of  longitude  is  necessarily 
much  shorter  than  when  nearer  to  the  middle  of  our  orb. 
On  the  equator,  a  degree  of  longitude  measures,  as  is 
known  to  most  boarding-school  young  ladies,  just  sixty 
geographical,  or  sixty-nine  and  a  half  English  statute  miles. 
But,  as  is  not  known  to  most  boarding-school  young  ladies, 
or  is  understood  by  very  few  of  them  indeed,  even  when 
known,  in  the  sixty-second  degree  of  latitude,  a  degree  of 
longitude  measures  but  little  more  than  thirty-two  of  those 
very  miles.  The  solution  of  this  seeming  contradiction  is 
so  very  simple  that  it  may  assist  a  certain  class  of  our 
readers  if  we  explain  it,  by  telling  them  that  it  arises  solely 
from  the  fact  that  these  degrees  of  longitude,  which  are 
placed  sixty  geographical  miles  asunder  at  the  centre  or 
middle  of  the  earth,  converge  towards  the  poles,  where 
they  all  meet  in  a  point.  According  to  the  best  observa 
tions  Roswell  Gardiner  could  obtain,  he  was  just  one  of 
these  short  degrees  of  longitude,  or  two-and-thirty  miles, 
to  the  westward  of  the  parallel  where  he  wished  to  be, 
when  the  wind  came  from  the  southward.  The  change 
was  favourable,  as  it  emboldened  him  to  run  nearer  than 
he  otherwise  might  have  felt  disposed  to  do,  to  the  great 
barrier  of  ice  which  now  formed  a  sort  of  weather-shore. 
Fortunately,  the  loose  bergs  and  sunken  masses  had  drifted 
off  so  far  to  the  northward,  that  once  within  them  the 
schooner  had  pretty  plain  sailing;  and  Roswell,  to  lose 
none  of  the  precious  time  of  the  season,  ventured  to  run, 
though  under  very  short  canvass,  the  whole  of  the  short 
night  that  succeeded.  It  is  a  great  assistance  to  the  navi 
gation  of  those  seas  that,  during  the  summer  months,  there 
is  scarcely  any  night  at  all,  giving  the  adventurer  sufficient 
light  by  which  to  thread  his  way  among  the  difficulties  of 
his  pathless  journey. 

When  the  sun  reappeared,  on  the  morning  of  the  sixth 
day  after  he  had  left  the  Horn,  Roswell  Gardiner  believed 
himself  to  be  far  enough  west  for  his  purposes.  It  now 
remained  to  get  a  whole  degree  further  to  the  south,  which 
was  a  vast  distance  in  those  seas  and  in  that  direction,  and 
would  carry  him  a  long  way  to  the  southward  of  the  '  Ne 
17* 


196  THE     SEA     LIONS. 

Plus  Ultra.'  If  there  was  any  truth  in  Daggett,  however, 
that  mariner  had  been  there;  and  the  instructions  of  the 
owner  rendered  it  incumbent  on  our  young  man  to  attempt 
to  follow  him.  More  than  once,  that  morning,  did  our 
hero  regret  he  had  not  entered  into  terms  with  the  Vine 
yard  men,  that  the  effort  might  have  been  made  in  com 
pany.  There  was  something  so  portentous  in  a  lone  ves 
sel's  venturing  within  the  ice,  in  so  remote  a  region,  that, 
to  say  the  truth,  Roswell  hesitated.  But  pride  of  profes 
sion,  ambition,  love  of  Mary,  dread  of  the  deacon,  native 
resolution,  and  the  hardihood  produced  by  experience  in 
dangers  often  encountered  and  escaped,  nerved  him  to  the 
undertaking.  It  must  be  attempted,  or  the  voyage  would 
be  lost;  and  our  young  mariner  now  set  about  his  task 
with  a  stern  determination  to  achieve  it. 

By  this  time  the  schooner  had  luffed  up  within  a  cable's 
*ength  of  the  ice,  along  the  margin  of  which  she  was  run 
ning  under  easy  sail.  Gardiner  believed  himself  to  be  quite 
as  far  to  the  westward  as  was  necessary,  and  his  present 
object  was  to  find  an  opening,  by  means  of  which  he  could 
enter  among  the  floating  chaos  that  was  spread,  far  and 
wide,  to  windward.  As  the  breeze  was  driving  the  drift 
ing  masses  to  the  northward,  they  became  loosened  and 
more  separated,  every  moment;  and  glad  enough  was  Gar 
diner  to  discover,  at  length,  a  clear  spot  that  seemed  to 
favour  his  views.  Without  an  instant's  delay,  the  sheets 
were  flattened  in,  a  pull  was  taken  on  the  braces,  and  away 
went  the  little  Sea  Lion  into  a  passage  that  had  a  hundred 
fold  more  real  causes  of  terror  than  the  Scylla  and  Charyb- 
dis  of  old. 

One  effect  of  the  vicinity  of  ice,  in  extensive  fields,  is  to 
produce  comparatively  still  water.  It  must  blow  a  gale, 
and  that  over  a  considerable  extent  of  open  sea,  to  produce 
much  commotion  among  the  fields  and  bergs,  though  that 
heaving  and  setting,  which  has  been  likened  to  the  respira 
tion  of  some  monster,  and  which  seamen  call  the  "ground- 
swell,"  is  never  entirely  wanting  among  the  waters  of  an 
ocean.  On  the  present  occasion,  our  adventurers  were 
favoured  in  this  respect,  their  craft  gliding  forward  unim 
peded  by  anything  like  opposing  billows.  At  the  end  of 
four  hours,  the  schooner,  tacking  and  waring  when  neces- 


THE     SEA     LIONS.  197 

sary,  had  worked  her  way  to  the  southward  and  westward, 
according  to  her  master's  reckoning,  some  five-and-twenty 
miles.  It  was  then  noon,  and  the  atmosphere  being  unu 
sually  clear,  though  never  without  fog,  Gardiner  went  aloft, 
to  take  a  look  for  himself  at  the  condition  of  things  around 
him. 

To  the  northward,  and  along  the  very  passage  by  which 
the  vessel  had  sailed,  the  ice  was  closing,  and  it  was  far 
easier  to  go  on  than  to  return.  To  the  eastward,  and 
towards  the  south-east  in  particular,  however,  did  Roswell 
Gardiner  turn  his  longing  eyes.  Somewhere  in  that  quar 
ter  of  the  ocean,  and  distant  now  less  than  ten  leagues,  did 
he  expect  to  find  the  islands  of  which  he  was  in  quest,  if, 
indeed,  they  had  any  existence  at  all.  In  that  direction 
there  were  many  passages  open  among  the  ice,  the  latter 
being  generally  higher  than  in  the  particular  place  to  which 
the  vessel  had  reached.  Once  or  twice,  Roswell  mistook 
the  summits  of  some  of  these  bergs  for  real  mountains, 
when,  owing  to  the  manner  in  which  the  light  fell  upon 
them,  or  rather  did  not  fall  upon  them  directly,  they  ap 
peared  dark  arid  earthy.  Each  time,  however,  the  sun's 
rays  soon  came  to  undeceive  him;  and  that  which  had  so 
lately  been  black  and  frowning  was,  as  by  the  touch  of 
magic,  suddenly  illuminated,  and  became  bright  and  gor 
geous,  throwing  out  its  emerald  hues,  or  perhaps  a  virgin 
white,  that  filled  the  beholder  with  delight,  even  amid  the 
terrors  and  dangers  by  which,  in  very  truth,  he  was  sur 
rounded.  The  glorious  Alps  themselves,  those  wonders  of 
the  earth,  could  scarcely  compete  in  scenery  with  the  views 
that  nature  lavished,  in  that  remote  sea,  on  a  seeming 
void.  But  the  might  and  honour  of  God  were  there,  as 
well  as  beneath  the  equator. 

For  one  whole  hour  did  Roswell  Gardiner  remnin  in  the 
cross-trees,  having  hailed  the  deck,  and  caused  the  schoo 
ner's  head  to  be  turned  to  the  south-east,  pressing  her 
through  the  openings  as  near  the  wind  as  she  could  go. 
The  atmosphere  was  never  without  fog,  though  the  vapour 
drifted  about,  leaving  large  vacancies  that  were  totally  clear. 
One  spot,  in  particular,  seemed  to  be  a  favourite  resting- 
place  for  these  low  clouds,  which  just  there  appeared  to 
ight  upon  the  face  of  the  ocean  itself.  A  wide  field  of  ice, 


. 
198  THE     SEA    LIONS. 

or,  it  were  better  to  say,  a  broad  belt  of  bergs,  lay  between 
this  stationary  cloud  and  the  schooner,  though  the  exist 
ence  of  the  vapour  early  caught  RoswelFs  attention ;  and 
during  the  hour  he  was  aloft,  conning  the  craft  through  a 
very  intricate  and  ticklish  channel,  not  a  minute  passed 
that  the  young  man  did  not  turn  a  look  towards  that  veiled 
spot.  He  was  in  the  act  of  placing  a  foot  on  the  ratlin 
below  him,  to  descend  to  the  deck,  when  he  half-uncon- 
sciously  turned  to  take  a  last  glance  at  this  distant  and 
seemingly  immovable  object.  Just  then,  the  vapour,  which 
had  kept  rolling  and  moving,  like  a  fluid  in  ebullition, 
while  it  still  clung  together,  suddenly  opened,  and  the  bald 
head  of  a  real  mountain,  a  thousand  feet  high,  came  unex 
pectedly  into  the  view  !  There  could  be  no  mistake ;  all 
was  too  plain  to  admit  of  a  doubt.  There,  beyond  all  ques 
tion,  was  land;  and  it  was  doubtless  the  most  western  of 
the  islands  described  by  the  dying  seaman.  Everything 
corroborated  this  conclusion.  The  latitude  and  longitude 
were  right,  or  nearly  so,  and  the  other  circumstances  went 
to  confirm  the  conjecture,  or  conclusion.  Daggett  had 
said  that  one  island,  high,  mountainous,  ragged  and  bleak, 
but  of  some  size,  lay  the  most  westerly  in  the  group,  while 
several  others  were  within  a  few  miles  of  it.  The  last  were 
lower,  much  smaller,  and  little  more  than  naked  rocks. 
One  of  these  last,  however,  he  insisted  on  it,  was  a  volcano 
in  activity,  and  that,  at  intervals,  it  emitted  flames  as  well 
as  a  fierce  heat.  By  his  account,  however,  the  party  to 
which  he  belonged  had  never  actually  visited  that  volcanic 
cauldron,  being  satisfied  with  admiring  its  terrors  from  a 
distance. 

As  to  the  existence  of  the  land,  Roswell  got  several 
pretty  distinct  and  certain  views,  leaving  no  doubt  of  its 
character  and  position.  There  is  a  theory  which  tells  us 
that  the  orb  of  day  is  surrounded  by  a  luminous  vapour, 
the  source  of  heat  and  light,  and  that  this  vapour,  being  in 
constant  motion,  occasionally  leaves  the  mass  of  the  planet 
itself  to  be  seen,  forming  what  it  is  usual  to  term  the  "  spots 
on  the  sun."  Resembling  this  theory,  the  fogs  of  the  ant 
arctic  seas  rolled  about  the  mountain  now  seen,  withdraw* 
ing  the  curtain  at  times,  and  permitting  a  view  of  the 
striking  and  majestic  object  within.  Well  did  that  lone 


THE     SEA     LIONS.  199 

and  nearly  barren  mass  of  earth  and  rock  merit  these  ap 
pellations  !  The  elevation  has  already  been  given  ;  and  a 
rock  that  is  nearly  perpendicular,  rising  out  of  the  ocean 
for  a  thousand  feet,  is  ever  imposing  and  grand.  This 
was  rendered  so  much  the  more  so  by  its  loneliness,  its 
stable  and  stern  position  amid  floating  and  moving  moun 
tains  of  ice,  its  brown  sides  and  bald  summit,  the  latter 
then  recently  whitened  with  a  fall  of  pure  snow,  and  its 
frowning  and  fixed  aspect  amid  a  scene  that  might  other 
wise  be  said  to  be  ever  in  motion. 

Roswell  Gardiner's  heart  beat  with  delight  when  assured 
of  success  in  discovering  this,  the  first  great  goal  of  his 
destination.  To  reach  it  was  now  his  all-absorbing  desire 
By  this  time  the  wind  had  got  round  to  the  southwest,  and 
was  blowing  quite  fresh,  bringing  him  well  to  windward 
of  the  mountain,  but  causing  the  ice-bergs  to  drift  in  to 
wards  the  land,  and  placing  an  impassable  barrier  along  its 
western  shore.  Our  young  man,  however,  remembered 
that  Daggett  had  given  the  anchorage  as  on  the  north-eastern 
side  of  the  island,  where,  according  to  his  statements,  a 
little  haven  would  be  found,  in  which  a  dozen  craft  might 
he  in  security.  To  this  quarter  of  the  island  Gardiner 
consequently  endeavoured  to  get. 

There  was  no  opening  to  the  northward,  but  a  pretty 
good  channel  was  before  the  schooner  to  the  southward  of 
the  group.  In  this  direction,  then,  the  Sea  Lion  was  steer 
ed,  and  by  eight  bells  (four  in  the  afternoon)  the  southern 
point  of  the  largest  island  was  doubled.  The  rest  of  the 
group  were  made,  and  to  the  infinite  delight  of  all  on  board 
her,  abundance  of  clear  water  was  found  between  the  main 
island  and  its  smaller  neighbours.  The  bergs  had  grounded 
apparently,  as  they  drew  near  the  group,  leaving  this  large 
bay  entirely  free  from  ice,  with  the  exception  of  a  few  small 
masses  that  were  floating  through  it.  These  bodies,  whether 
field  or  berg,  were  easily  avoided ;  and  away  the  schooner 
went,  with  flowing  sheets,  into  the  large  basin  formed  by 
the  different  members  of  the  group.  To  render  '  assurance 
doubly  sure/  as  to  the  information  of  Daggett,  the  smoke 
of  a  volcano  arose  from  a  rock  to  the  eastward,  that  ap 
peared  to  be  some  three  or  four  miles  in  circumference, 
and  which  stood  on  the  eastern  side  of  the  great  basin,  or 


200  THE     SEA    LIONS. 

some  four  leagues  from  Sealer's  Land,  as  Daggett  had  at 
once  named  the  principal  island.  This  was,  in  fact,  about 
the  breadth  of  the  main  basin,  which  had  two  principal 
passages  into  it,  the  one  from  the  south  and  the  other  from 
the  north-east. 

Once  within  the  islands,  and  reasonably  clear  of  all  ice, 
it  was  an  easy  thing  for  the  schooner  to, run  across  the 
basin,  or  great  bay,  and  reach  the  north-eastern  extremity 
of  Sealer's  Land.  As  the  light  would  continue  some  hours 
longer,  there  being  very  little  night  in  that  high  latitude  in 
December,  the  month  that  corresponds  to  our  June,  Ros- 
well  caused  a  boat  to  be  lowered  arid  manned,  when  he 
pulled  at  once  towards  the  spot  where  it  struck  him  the 
haven  must  be  found,  if  there  were  any  such  place  at  all 
Everything  turned  out  as  it  had  been  described  by  Daggett, 
and  great  was  our  young  man's  satisfaction  when  he  rowed 
into  a  cove  that  was  little  more  than  two  hundred  yards  in 
diameter,  and  which  was  so  completely  land-locked  as  riot 
to  feel  the  influence  of  any  sea  outside.  In  general,  the 
great  difficulty  is  to  land  on  any  of  the  antarctic  rocks,  the 
breakers  and  surf  opposing  it ;  out,  in  this  spot,  the  smallest 
boat  could  be  laid  with  its  bows  on  a  beach  of  shingles, 
without  the  slightest  risk  of  its  being  injured.  The  lead 
also  announced  good  anchorage  in  about  eight  fathoms  of 
water.  In  a  word,  this  little  haven  was  one  of  those  small 
basins  that  so  often  occur  in  mountainous  islands,  where 
fragments  of  rock  appear  to  have  fallen  from  the  principal 
mass  as  it  was  forced  upward  out  of  the  ocean,  as  if  pur 
posely  intended  to  meet  the  wants  of  mariners. 

Nor  was  the  outer  bay,  or  the  large  basin  formed  by  the 
entire  group,  by  any  means  devoid  of  advantages  to  the 
navigator.  From  north  to  south  this  outer  bay  was  at  least 
six  leagues  in  length,  while  its  breadth  could  not  much 
have  fallen  short  of  four.  Of  course  it  was  much  more 
exposed  to  the  winds  and  waves  than  the  little  harbour  pro 
per,  though  Roswell  was  struck  with  the  great  advantages 
it  offered  in  several  essential  particulars.  It  was  almost 
clear  of  ice,  while  so  much  was  floating  about  outside  of 
the  circle  of  islands;  thus  leaving  a  free  navigation  in  it 
for  even  the  smallest  boat.  This  was  mainly  owing  to  the 
fact  that  the  largest  island  had  two  long  crescent-shaped 


THE     SEA     LIONS.  201 

capes,  the  one  at  its  north-eastern  and  the  other  at  its  south 
eastern  extremity,  giving  to  its  whole  eastern  side  the  shape 
of  a  new  moon.  The  harbour  just  described  was  to  the 
southward  of,  or  within  the  north-eastern  cape,  which  our 
young  master  at  once  named  Cape  Hazard,  in  honour  of 
his  chief  mate's  vigilance;  that  officer  having  been  the  first 
to  point  out  the  facilities  probably  offered  by  the  formation 
of  the  land  for  an  anchorage. 

Though  rocky  and  broken,  it  was  by  no  means  difficult 
to  ascend  the  rugged  banks  on  the  northern  side  of  the 
harbour,  and  Gardiner  went  up  it,  attended  by  Stimson, 
who  of  late  had  much  attached  himself  to  the '"person  of  his 
commander.  The  height  of  this  barrier  above  the  waves 
of  the  ocean  was  but  a  little  less  than  a  hundred  feet,  and 
when  the  summit  was  reached,  a  common  exclamation  of 
surprise,  not  to  say  delight,  broke  from  the  lips  of  both. 
Hitherto  not  a  seal  of  any  sort  had  been  seen,  and  Gardiner 
had  felt  some  misgivings  touching  the  benefits  that  were  to 
be  derived  from  so  much  hardship,  exposure  and  enterprise. 
All  doubts,  however,  vanished,  the  instant  he  got  a  sight  of 
the  northern  shore  of  the  island.  This  shore,  a  reach  of 
several  miles  in  extent,  was  fairly  alive  with  the  monsters 
of  which  he  was  in  search.  They  lay  in  thousands  on  the 
low  rocks  that  lined  that  entire  side  of  the  island,  basking 
in  the  sun  of  the  antarctic  seas.  There  they  were,  sure 
enough  !  Sea  Lions,  Sea  Elephants,  huge,  clumsy,  fierce- 
looking  and  revolting  creatures,  belonging  properly  to  nei 
ther  sea  nor  land.  These  animals  were  constantly  going 
and  coming  in  crowds,  some  waddlincr  to  the  margin  of  the 
rocks  and  tumbling  into  the  ocean  in  search  of  food,  while 
others  scrambled  out  of  the  water,  and  got  upon  shelves 
and  other  convenient  places  to  repose  and  enjoy  the  light 
of  day.  There  was  very  little  contention  or  fighting  among 
these  revolting-looking  creatures,  though  nearly  every  known 
species  of  the  larger  seals  was  among  them. 

"There  is  famous  picking  for  us,  master  Stephen,"  said 
Roswell  to  his  companion,  fairly  rubbing  his  hands  in  de 
light.  "One  month's  smart  work  will  fill  the  schooner, 
and  we  can  be  off  before  the  equinox.  Does  it  not  seem  to 
you  that  yonder  are  the  bones  of  sea  lions,  or  of  seals  of 


202  THE     SEA     LIONS. 

some  sort,  lying  hereaway  as  if  men  had  been  at  work  on 
the  creatures?" 

"No  doubt  on't  at  all,  Captain  Gar'ner;  as  much  out 
of  the  way  as  this  island  is  —  and  I  never  heard  of  the 
place  afore,  old  a  sealer  as  I  am  —  but,  as  much  out  of  the 
way  as  it  is,  we  are  not  the  first  to  find  it.  Somebody  has 
been  here,  and  that  within  a  year  or  two ;  and  he  has  pick 
ed  up  a  cargo,  too,  depend  on't." 

As  all  this  merely  corresponded  with  Daggett's  account 
of  the  place,  Roswell  felt  no  surprise;  on  the  contrary,  he 
saw  in  it  a  confirmation  of  all  that  Daggett  had  stated,  and 
as  furnishing  so  much  the  more  reason  to  hope  for  a  suc 
cessful  termination  to  the  voyage  in  all  its  parts.  While  on 
the  rocks,  Roswell  took  such  a  survey  of  the  localities  as 
might  enable  him  to  issue  his  orders  hereafter  with  discre 
tion  and  intelligence.  The  schooner  was  already  making 
short  tacks  to  get  close  in  with  the  island,  in  obedience  to 
a  signal  to  that  effect;  and  the  second  mate  had  pulled  out 
to  the  entrance  of  the  little  haven,  with  a  view  to  act  as 
pilot.  Before  the  captain  had  descended  from  the  summit 
of  the  northern  barrier,  the  vessel  came  in  under  her  jib, 
the  wind  being  nearly  aft,  and  she  dropped  two  anchors  in 
suitable  spots,  making  another  flying  moor  of  it. 

General  joy  now  illuminated  every  face.  It  was,  in  itself, 
a  great  point  gained  to  get  the  schooner  into  a  perfectly 
safe  haven,  where  her  people  could  take  their  natural  rest 
at  night,  or  during  their  watches  below,  without  feeling  any 
apprehension  of  being  crushed  in  the  ice;  but  here  was 
not  only  security,  but  the  source  of  that  wealth  of  which 
they  were  in  quest,  and  which  had  induced  them  all  to  en 
counter  so  many  privations  and  so  much  danger.  The 
crew  landed  to  a  man,  each  individual  ascending  to  the 
summit  of  the  barrier,  to  feast  his  eyes  on  the  spectacle 
that  lay  spread  in  such  affluent  abundance,  along  the  low 
rocks  of  the  northern  side  of  the  island. 

As  there  were  yet  several  hours  of  light  remaining,  Ros 
well,  still  attended  by  Stimson,  each  armed  with  a  sealing- 
spear  or  lance,  not  only  as  a  weapon  of  defence  but  as  a 
leaping-staff,  set  out  to  climb  as  high  up  the  central  accli 
vity  of  the  island  as  circumstances  would  allow  him  to  go. 
He  was  deceived  in  the  distances,  however,  and  soon  found 


HE     SEA     LIONS.  203 

that  an  entire  day  would  be  necessary  to  achieve  such  an 
enterprise,  could  it  be  performed  at  all ;  but  he  did  succeed 
in  reaching  a  low  spur  of  the  central  mountain  that  com 
manded  a  wide  and  noble  view  of  all  that  lay  to  the  north 
and  east  of  it.  From  this  height,  which  must  have  been  a 
few  hundred  feet  above  the  level  of  the  ocean,  our  adven 
turers  got  a  still  better  view  of  the  whole  north  coast,  or 
of  what  might  have  been  called  the  sealing  quarter  of  the 
island.  They  also  got  a  tolerably  accurate  idea  of  the 
general  formation  of  that  lone  fragment  of  rock  and  earth, 
as  well  as  of  the  islets  and  islands  that  lay  in  its  vicinity. 
The  outline  of  the  first  was  that  of  a  rude,  and  of  course 
an  irregular  triangle,  the  three  principal  points  of  which 
were  the  two  low  capes  already  mentioned,  and  a  third  that 
lay  to  the  northward  and  westward.  The  whole  of  the 
western  or  south-western  shore  seemed  to  be  a  nearly  per 
pendicular  wall  of  rock,  that,  in  the  main,  rose  some  two 
or  three  hundred  feet  above  the  ocean.  Against  this  side 
of  the  island  in  particular,  the  waves  of  the  ocean  were 
sullenly  beating,  while  the  ice  drove  up  *  home,'  as  sailors 
express  it ;  showing  a  vast  depth  of  water.  On  the  two 
other  sides,  it  was  different.  The  winds  prevailed  most 
from  the  south-west,  which  rendered  the  perpendicular  face 
of  the  island  its  weather-wall ;  while  the  two  other  sides 
of  the  triangle  were  more  favoured  by  position.  The  north 
side,  of  course,  lay  most  exposed  to  the  sun,  everything  of 
this  nature  being  reversed  in  the  southern  hemisphere  from 
what  we  have  it  in  the  northern  ;  while  the  eastern  or  north 
eastern  side,  to  be  precisely  accurate,  was  protected  by  the 
group  of  islands  that  lay  in  its  front.  Such  was  the  general 
character  of  Sealer's  Land,  so  far  as  the  hurried  observa 
tions  of  its  present  master  enabled  him  to  ascertain.  The 
near  approach  of  night  induced  him  now  to  hasten  to  get 
off  of  the  somewhat  dangerous  acclivities  to  which  he  had 
climbed,  and  to  rejoin  his  people  and  his  schooner. 


204  THE    SEA    LIONS. 


CHAPTER  XV. 

MYe  dart  upon  the  deep,  and  straight  is  heard 

A  wilder  roar;  and  men  grow  pale,  and  pray: 
Ye  fling  its  waters  round  you,  as  a  bird 

Flings  o'er  his  shivering  plumes  the  fountain's  spray. 
See  !   to  the  breaking  mast  the  sailor  clings! 
Ye  scoop  the  ocean  to  its  briny  springs, 
And  take  the  mountain  billows  on  your  wings, 
And  pile  the  wreck  of  navies  round  the  bay." 

BRYANT'S  WIKDB 

No  unnecessary  delay  was  permitted  to  interfere  with  the 
one  great  purpose  of  the  sealers.  The  season  was  so  short, 
and  the  difficulties  and  dangers  of  entering  among  and  of 
quitting  the  ice  were  so  very  serious,  that  every  soul  be 
longing  to  the  schooner  felt  the  importance  of  activity  and 
industry.  The  very  day  that  succeeded  the  vessel's  arrival, 
not  only  was  great  progress  made  in  the  preliminary  ar 
rangements,  but  a  goodly  number  of  fur-seals,  of  excellent 
quality,  were  actually  killed  and  secured.  Two  noble  sea- 
elephants  were  also  lanced,  animals  that  measured  near 
thirty  feet  in  length,  each  of  which  yielded  a  very  ample 
return  for  the  risk  and  trouble  of  taking  it,  in  oil.  The 
skins  of  the  fur-seals,  however,  were  Roswell's  principal 
object ;  and  glad  enough  was  he  to  find  the  creature  that 
pays  this  tribute  to  the  wants  and  luxuries  of  man,  in  num 
bers  sufficient  to  promise  him  a  speedy  return  to  the  north 
ward.  While  the  slaughter,  and  skinning,  and  curing,  and 
trying  out  were  all  in  active  operation,  our  young  man  paid 
some  attention  to  certain  minor  arrangements,  which  had 
a  direct  bearing  on  the  comforts  of  his  people,  as  well  as 
the  getting  in  of  cargo. 

An  old  store-house,  of  respectable  size,  had  stood  on  the 
deacon's  wharf,  while  tl  e  schooner  was  fitting  out,  but  it 
had  been  taken  to  pieces,  in  order  to  make  room  for  a 
more  eligible  substitute  The  materials  of  this  building, 
Roswell  Gardiner  had  persuaded  his  owner  to  send  on 


THE     SEA     LIONS.  205 

board,  and  they  had  all  been  received  and  stowed  away,  a 
part  below  and  a  part  on  deck,  as  a  provision  for  the  pos 
sible  wants  of  the  people.  As  it  was  necessary  to  clear  the 
decks  and  break  out  the  hold,  all  these  materials,  consisting 
principally  of  the  timbers  of  the  frame,  the  siding,  and  a 
quantity  of  planks  and  boards,  were  now  floated  ashore  in 
the  cove,  and  hauled  up  on  the  rocks.  Roswell  took  a  lei 
sure  moment  to  select  a  place  for  the  site  of  his  building, 
which  he  intended  to  erect  at  once,  in  order  to  save  the 
time  that  would  otherwise  be  lost  in  pulling  between  the 
schooner  and  the  shore. 

It  was  not  difficult  to  find  the  sort  of  spot  that  was  desi 
rable  for  the  dwelling.  That  chosen  by  Gardiner  was  a 
shelf  of  rock  of  sufficient  extent,  that  lay  perfectly  exposed 
to  the  north  and  north-east,  or  to  the  sunny  side  of  the 
island,  while  it  was  sheltered  from  the  south  and  south-west 
by  masses  of  rock,  that  formed  a  complete  protection 
against  the  colder  winds  of  the  region.  These  walls  of 
stone,  however,  were  not  sufficiently  near  to  permit  any 
snows  they  might  collect  to  impend  over  the  building,  but 
enough  space  was  left  between  them  and  the  house,  to 
admit  of  a  capacious  yard,  in  which  might  be  placed  any 
articles  that  were  necessary  to  the  ordinary  work,  or  to  the 
wants  of  the  sealers. 

Had  it  been  advisable  to  set  all  hands  at  the  business  of 
slaughtering,  Roswell  Gardiner  certainly  would  not  have 
lost  the  time  he  did,  in  the  erection  of  his  house.  But  our 
master  was  a  judicious  and  wary  commander  at  his  calling. 
The  seals  were  now  perfectly  tame,  and  nothing  was  easier 
than  to  kill  them  in  scores.  The  great  difficulty  was  in 
removing  the  spoils  across  the  rocks,  as  it  was  sometimes 
necessary  to  do  so  for  a  distance  of  several  miles.  Means 
were  found,  in  the  end,  to  use  the  boats  on  this  service, 
though  even  then,  at  midsummer,  the  northern  shore  of  the 
island  was  frequently  so  closely  beset  by  the  ice  as  com 
pletely  to  block  up  the  passage.  This,  too,  occurred  at 
times  when  the  larger  bay  was  nearly  free,  and  the  cove, 
which  went  by  the  name  of  the  "  Deacon's  Bight,"  among 
the  men,  was  entirely  so.  In  order  to  prevent  a  premature 
panic  among  the  victims  of  this  intended  foray,  then,  Gar 
diner  allowed  no  one  to  go  out  to  "  kill"  but  the  experienced 


206  THE    SEA    LIONS 

hands,  and  no  more  to  be  slain  each  day  than  could  be 
skinned  or  cut  up  at  that  particular  time.  In  consequence 
of  this  prudent  caution,  the  work  soon  got  into  a  regular 
train ;  and  it  was  early  found  that  more  was  done  in  this 
mode,  than  could  have  been  effected  by  a  less  guarded  as 
sault  on  the  seals. 

As  for  the  materials  of  the  building,  they  were  hauled 
up  the  rocks  without  much  difficulty.  The  frame  was  of 
some  size,  as  is  the  case  generally  with  most  old  construc 
tions  in  America;  but  being  of  pine,  thoroughly  seasoned, 
the  sills  and  plates  were  not  so  heavy  but  that  they  might 
be  readily  enough  handled  by  the  non-sealing  portion  of  the 
crew.  Robert  Smith,  the  landsman,  was  a  carpenter  by 
trade,  and  it  fell  to  his  lot  to  put  together  again  the  mate 
rials  of  the  old  warehouse.  Had  there  not  been  such  a 
mechanic  among  the  crew,  however,  a  dozen  Americans 
could,  at  any  time,  construct  a  house,  the  '  rough  and  ready' 
habits  of  the  people  usually  teaching  them,  in  a  rude  way, 
a  good  deal  of  a  great  many  other  arts,  besides  this  of  the 
carpeater.  Mott  had  served  a  part  of  his  time  with  a  black 
smith,  and  he  now  set  up  his  forge.  When  the  frame  was 
ready,  all  hands  assembled  to  assist  in  raising  it;  and,  by 
the  end  of  the  first  week,  the  building  was  actually  enclosed, 
the  labour  amounting  to  no  more  than  putting  each  portion 
in  its  place,  and  securing  it  there,  the  saw  being  scarcely 
used  during  the  whole  process.  This  building  had  two 
apartments,  one  of  which  Gardiner  appropriated  to  the  uses 
of  a  sitting-room,  and  the  other  to  that  of  a  dormitory. 
Rough  bunks  were  constructed,  and  the  mattresses  of  the 
men  were  all  brought  ashore,  and  put  in  the  house.  It  was 
intended  that  everybody  should  sleep  in  the  building,  as  it 
would  save  a  great  deal  of  going  to  and  fro,  as  well  as  a 
great  deal  of  time.  The  cargo  was  to  be  collected  on  a 
shelf  of  rock,  that  lay  about  twenty  feet  below  that  on  which 
the  building  stood ;  by  following  which,  it  was  possible  to 
turn  the  highest  point  of  the  pass,  that  which  formed  the 
southern  protection  of  the  building,  and  come  out  on  the 
side  of  the  cove  at  another  shelf,  that  was  not  more  than 
fifty  feet  above  the  level  of  the  vessel's  decks.  Down  this 
last  declivity,  Roswell  proposed  to  lower  his  casks  by  means 
of  a  projecting  derrick,  the  rock  being  sufficiently  precipi- 


THE    SEA    LIONS.  207 

tous  to  admit  of  this  arrangement,  while  his  spare  spars 
furnished  him  with  the  necessary  means.  Thus  was  every 
preparation  made  with  judgment  and  foresight. 

In  this  manner  did  the  first  ten  days  pass,  every  man  and 
boy  being  as  busy  as  bees.  To  own  the  truth,  no  attention 
was  paid  to  the  Sabbath,  which  would  seem  to  have  been 
left  behind  them  by  the  people,  among  the  descendants  of 
those  Puritans  who  were  so  rigid  in  their  observance  of 
that  festival.  At  the  end  of  the  time  just  mentioned,  a 
great  deal  had  been  done.  The  house,  such  as  it  was,  was 
completed.  To  be  sure,  it  was  nothing  but  an  old  store 
house  re-vamped,  but  it  was  found  to  be  of  infinite  service, 
and  greatly  did  all  hands  felicitate  themselves  at  having 
brought  its  materials  along  with  them.  Even  those  who 
had  most  complained  of  the  labour  of  getting  the  timbers 
on  board,  had  the  most  often  cursed  them  for  being  in  the 
way,  during  the  passage,  and  had  continued  the  loudest  to 
deride  the  idea  of*  sealers  turning  carpenters,'  were  shortly 
willing  to  allow  that  the  possession  of  this  dwelling  was  of 
the  greatest  value  to  them,  and  that,  so  far  from  the  extra 
work's  causing  them  to  fall  behind  in  their  main  operations, 
the  comfort  they  found,  in  having  a  home  like  this  to  go  to, 
after  a  long  day's  toil,  refreshed  them  to  a  degree  which  en 
abled  every  man  to  return  to  his  labour,  with  a  zeal  and  an 
energy  that  might  otherwise  have  been  wanting.  Although 
it  was  in  the  warmest  season  of  the  year,  and  the  nights 
could  scarcely  be  called  nights  at  all,  yet  the  sun  never  got 
very  -low  without  leaving  a  chilliness  in  the  air  that  would 
have  rendered  sleeping  without  a  cover  and  a  protection 
from  the  winds,  not  only  excessively  uncomfortable,  but 
somewhat  dangerous.  Indeed,  it  was  often  found  necessary 
to  light  a  fire  in  the  old  ware-house.  This  was  done  by 
means  of  a  capacious  box-stove,  that  was  almost  as  old  as 
the  building  itself,  and  which  had  also  been  brought  along 
as  an  article  of  great  necessity  in  that  climate.  Fuel  could 
not  be  wanting,  as  long  as  the  '  scraps'  from  the  try-works 
abounded,  and  there  were  many  more  of  these  than  were 
needed  to  « try  out'  the  sea-elephant  oil.  The  schooner, 
however,  had  a  very  ample  supply  of  wood  to  burn,  that 
being  an  article  which  abounded  on  Shelter  Island,  and 
which  the  deacon  had  consented  to  lay  in,  in  some  abun- 
18* 


208  THE    SEA    LIONS 

dance.  Gardiner  got  this  concession  out  of  the  miserly 
temperament  of  the  old  man,  by  persuading  him  that  a 
sealer  could  not  work  to  any  advantage,  unless  he  had  the 
means  of  occasionally  warming  himself.  The  miserly  pro 
pensities  of  the  deacon  were  not  so  engrossing  that  he  did 
not  comprehend  the  wisdom  of  making  sufficient  outlay  to 
secure  the  execution  of  his  main  object ;  and  among  other 
things  of  this  nature,  the  schooner  had  sailed  with  a  very 
large  supply  of  wood,  as  has  just  been  stated.  Wood  and 
onions,  indeed,  were  more  abundant  in  her  than  any  other 
stores. 

The  arrangements  described  were  completed  by  the  end 
of  the  first  fortnight,  during  which  period  the  business  of 
sealing  was  also  carried  on  with  great  industry  and  success. 
So  very  tame  were  the  victims,  and  so  totally  unconscious 
of  the  danger  they  incurred  from  the  presence  of  man,  that 
the  crew  moved  round  among  them,  seemingly  but  very 
little  observed,  and  not  at  all  molested.  The  utmost  care 
was  taken  to  give  no  unnecessary  alarm  ;  and  when  an  ani 
mal  was  lanced,  it  was  done  in  such  a  quiet  way  as  to  pro 
duce  as  little  commotion  as  possible.  By  the  end  of  the 
time  named,  however,  the  sealing  had  got  so  advanced  as 
to  require  the  aid  of  all  hands  in  securing  the  spoils.  To 
work,  then,  everybody  went,  with  a  hearty  good-will:  and 
the  shelf  of  rock  just  below  the  house  was  soon  well  gar 
nished  with  casks  and  skins.  Had  the  labour  been  limited 
to  the  mere  killing,  and  skinning,  and  curing,  and  barrel 
ing  of  oil,  it  would  have  been  comparatively  quite  light; 
but  the  necessity  of  transporting  the  fruits  of  all  this  skill 
and  luck  considerable  distances,  in  some  cases  several 
miles,  and  this  over  broken  rocks,  formed  the  great  obsta 
cle  to  immediate  success.  It  was  the  opinion  of  Roswell 
Gardiner,  that  he  could  have  filled  his  schooner  in  a  month, 
were  it  possible  to  place  her  directly  alongside  of  the  rocks 
frequented  by  the  seals,  and  prevent  all  this  toil  in  trans 
porting.  This,  however,  was  impossible,  the  waves  and  the 
ice  rendering  it  certain  destruction  to  lay  a  craft  anywhere 
along  the  northern  shore  of  the  island.  The  boats  might 
be,  and  occasionally  they  were  used,  bringing  loads  of  skin 
and  oil  round  the  cape,  quite  into  the  cove.  These  little 
cargoes  were  immediately  transferred  to  the  hold  of  the 


THE     SEA     LIONS.  209 

Bchooner,  a  ground-tier  of  large  casks  having  been  left  in 
her  purposely  to  receive  the  oil,  which  was  emptied  into 
them  by  means  of  a  hose.  By  the  end  of  the  third  week, 
this  ground-tier  was  filled,  and  the  craft  became  stiff,  and 
was  in  good  ballast  trim,  although  the  spare  water  was  now 
entirely  pumped  out  of  her. 

All  this  time  the  weather  was  very  fair  for  so  high  a  lati 
tude,  and  every  way  propitious.  The  twenty-third  day  after 
the  schooner  got  in,  Roswell  was  standing  on  a  spur  of  the 
hill,  at  no  great  distance  from  the  house,  overlooking  the 
long  reach  of  rocky  coast  over  which  the  '  sea-elephants,' 
and  '  lions,'  and  '  dogs,'  and  '  bears,'  were  waddling  in  as 
much  seeming  security  as  the  hour  when  he  first  saw  them. 
The  sun  was  just  rising,  and  the  seals  were  clambering  up 
out  of  the  water  to  enjoy  its  warm  rays,  as  they  placed 
hemselves  in  positions  favourable  to  such  a  purpose. 

"  That  is  a  pleasant  sight  to  a  true  sealer,  Captain  Gar'- 
ner,"  observed  Stimson,  who  as  usual  had  kept  near  his 
officer,  "  and  one  that  I  can  say  I  never  before  saw  equalled. 
I've  been  in  this  business  now  some  five-and-twenty  years, 
and  never  before  have  I  met  with  so  safe  a  harbour  for  a 
craft,  and  so  large  herds  that  have  not  been  stirred  up  and 
got  to  be  skeary." 

"  We  have  certainly  been  very  fortunate  thus  far,  Ste 
phen,  and  I  am  now  in  hopes  we  may  fill  up  and  be  off  in 
good  season  to  get  clear  of  the  ice,"  returned  Roswell. 
"  Our  luck  has  been  surprising,  all  things  considered." 

"You  call  it  luck,  Captain  Gar'ner;  but,  in  my  creed, 
there  is  a  truer  and  a  better  word  for  it,  sir." 

"Ay,  I  know  well  enough  what  you  mean,  Stephen ; 
though  I  cannot  fancy  that  Providence  cares  much  whether 
we  shall  take  a  hundred  seals  to-day,  or  none  at  all." 

i(  Such  is  not  my  idee,  sir ;  and  I  'm  not  ashamed  to  own 
it.  In  my  humble  way  of  thinking,  Captain  Gar'ner,  the 
finger  of  Divine  Providence  is  in  all  that  comes  to  pass ;  if 
not  straight  ahead  like,  as  a  body  would  receive  a  fall,  still, 
by  sartain  laws  that  bring  about  everything  that  is  to  hap 
pen,  just  as  it  does  happen.  I  believe  now,  sir,  that  Provi 
dence  does  not  intend  we  shall  take  any  seals  at  all  to-day, 


210  THE     SEA    LIONS. 

"  Why  not,  Stimson  ?  It  is  the  very  finest  day  we  have 
had  since  we  have  been  on  the  island !" 

"That's  true  enough;  and  it  is  this  glorious  sunny  day, 
glorious  and  sunny  for  sich  a  high  latitude,  that  makes  me 
feel  and  think  that  this  day  was  not  intended  for  work* 
You  probably  forget  it  is  the  Sabbath,  Captain  Gar'ner." 

"  Sure  enough ;  1  had  forgotten  that,  Stephen ;  but  we 
sealers  seldom  lie  by  for  such  a  reason." 

"  So  much  the  worse  for  us  sealers,  then,  sir.  This  is 
my  seventeenth  v'y'ge  into  these  seas,  sir,  and  I  will  say 
that  more  of  them  have  been  made  with  officers  and  crews 
that  did  not  keep  the  Sabbath,  than  with  officers  and  crews 
that  did.  Still,  I  have  obsarved  one  thing,  sir,  that  the 
man  who  takes  his  rest  one  day  in  seven,  and  freshens  his 
nind,  as  it  might  be,  with  thinking  of  other  matters  than 
nis  every-day  consarns,  comes  to  his  task  with  so  much 
better  will,  when  he  does  set  about  it,  as  to  turn  off  greater 
profit  than  if  he  worked  night  and  day,  Sundays  and  all." 

Roswell  Gardiner  had  no  great  reverence  for  the  Chris 
tian  Sabbath,  and  this  more  because  it  was  so  called,  than 
for  any  sufficient  reason  in  itself.  Pride  of  reason  rendered 
him  jealous  of  everything  like  a  concession  to  the  faith  of 
those  who  believed  in  the  Son  of  God ;  and  he  was  very 
apt  to  dissent  from  all  admission  that  had  even  the  most 
remote  bearing  on  its  truth.  Still,  as  a  kind-hearted  com 
mander,  as  well  as  a  judicious  reasoner  on  the  economy  of 
his  fellow-creatures,  he  fully  felt  the  policy  of  granting  re 
laxation  to  labour.  Nor  was  he  indisposed  to  believe  in  the 
care  of  a  Divine  Providence,  or  in  its  justice,  though  less 
believing  in  this  respect  than  the  illiterate  but  earnest- 
minded  seaman  who  stood  at  his  side.  He  knew  very  well 
that  "  all  work,  and  no  play,  makes  Jack  a  dull  boy;"  and 
he  understood  well  enough  that  it  was  good  for  man,  at 
stated  seasons,  to  raise  his  mind  from  the  cares  and  busi 
ness  of  this  world,  to  muse  on  those  of  the  world  that  is  to 
come.  Though  inclined  to  Deism,  Roswell  worshipped  in 
his  heart  the  creator  of  all  he  saw  and  understood,  as  well 
as  much  that  he  could  neither  scan  nor  comprehend. 

"This  is  not  the  seaman's  usual  way  of  thinking,"  re 
turned  our  hero,  after  regarding  his  companion  for  a  mo» 


THE     SEA    LIONS.  211 

merit,   a  little  intently.     "  With   us,  there  is  very  little 
Sabbath  in  blue-water." 

"  Too  little,  sir ;  much  too  little.  Depend  on 't,  Captain 
Gar'ner,  God  is  on  the  face  of  the  waters  as  well  as  on  the 
hill-tops.  His'Spirit  is  everywhere ;  and  it  must  grieve  it 
to  see  human  beings,  that  have  been  created  in  his  image, 
so  bent  on  gain  as  to  set  apart  no  time  even  for  rest ;  much 
less  for  his  worship  and  praise !" 

"  I  am  not  certain  you  are  wrong,  Stimson,  and  I  feel 
much  more  sure  that  you  are  right  as  a  political  economist 
than  in  your  religion.  There  should  be  seasons  of  rest  and 
reflection  —  yet  I  greatly  dislike  losing  a  day  as  fine  33 
this." 

" « The  better  the  day,  the  better  the  deed/  sir.  No  time 
is  lost  to  him  who  stops  in  his  work  to  think  a  little  of  his 
God.  Our  crew  is  used  to  having  a  Sabbath ;  and  though 
we  work  on  lays,  there  is  not  a  hand  aboard  us,  Captain 
Gar'ner,  who  would  not  be  glad  to  hear  the  word  pass 
among  'em  which  should  say  this  is  the  Lord's  Day,  and 
you've  to  knock  off  from  your  labour." 

"As  I  believe  you  understand  the  people,  Stephen,  and 
we  have  had  a  busy  time  of  it  since  we  got  in,  I'll  take  you 
at  your  word,  and  give  the  order..  Go  and  tell  Mr.  Hazard 
there  '11  be  no  duty  carried  on  to-day  beyond  what  is  indis 
pensable.  It  is  Sunday,  and  we  '11  make  it  a  day  of  rest." 

Truth  compels  us  to  say  that  Roswell  was  quite  as  much 
influenced  in  giving  this  order,  by  recollecting  the  pleasure 
it  would  give  Mary,  as  by  any  higher  consideration. 

Glad  enough  was  Stimson  to  hear  this  order,  and  away 
he  hastened  to  find  the  mate,  that  it  might  be  at  once  com 
municated  to  the  men.  Although  this  well-disposed  seaman 
a  little  overrated  the  motives  of  a  portion  of  the  crew  at 
least,  he  was  right  enough  as  to  the  manner  in  which  they 
would  receive  the  new  regulation.  Rest  and  relaxation 
had  become,  in  a  measure,  necessary  to  them ;  and  leisure 
was  also  needed  to  enable  the  people  to  clean  themselves ; 
the  business  in  which  they  had  been  engaged  being  one 
that  accumulates  oily  substances,  and  requiring  occasional 
purifications  of  the  body  in  order  to  preserve  the  health. 
The  scurvy,  that  great  curse  of  long  voyages,  is  as  much 
owing  to  neglect  of  cleanliness  as  to  diet. 


212  THE     SEA     LIONS. 

No  sooner  was  it  known  that  this  day  was  to  be  treated 
as  the  Sabbath,  than  soap,  razors,  scissors,  and  all  the  usual 
appliances  of  the  sailor's  toilet,  were  drawn  out  of  bags  and 
chests,  and  paraded  about  on  the  rocks.  An  hour  passed 
in  scrubbing,  shaving,  cutting  hair,  holding  garments  up 
to  the  light  to  look  for  holes  and  ascertain  their  condition, 
and  rummaging  among  "  properties,"  as  the  player  would 
term  the  different  wardrobes  that  were  thus  brought  into 
view.  The  mates  came  out  of  the  melee  '  shaven  and  shorn/ 
as  well  as  neatly  attired ;  and  there  was  not  a  man  on  the 
island  who  did  not  look  like  a  different  being  from  what  he 
had  appeared  an  hour  before,  in  consequence  of  this  pause 
in  the  regular  business  of  sealing,  and  the  promised  holi 
day.  A  strict  order  was  given  that  no  one  should  go  among 
the  seals,  as  it  was  feared  that  some  indiscretion  or  other 
might  have  a  tendency  to  create  an  alarm.  In  all  other 
respects  the  island  was  placed  at  the  disposal  of  the  men, 
if  anything  could  be  made  of  such  a  lone  spot,  a  speck  on 
the  surface  of  the  antarctic  seas,  and  nearly  encircled  by 
mountains  of  floating  ice. 

As  for  Roswell  himself,  after  reading  a  chapter  or  two 
in  Mary  Pratt's  bible,  he  determined  to  make  another  effort 
to  ascend  to  the  summit  of  the  sterile  rocks  which  capped 
the  pile  that  rose  vertically  in  the  centre  of  the  island.  The 
day  was  nearly  all  before  him  ;  and,  summoning  Stimson 
as  a  companion,  for  he  had  taken  a  great  fancy  to  this  man, 
away  he  went,  young,  active,  and  full  of  buoyancy.  Almost 
at  the  same  instant,  Hazard,  the  chief  mate,  pulled  out  of 
the  cove  in  one  of  the  whale-boats,  manned  by  volunteers 
and  provided  with  sails,  with  an  intention  to  cross  the  Great 
Bay,  and  get  a  nearer  view  of  the  volcanic  hill,  out  of  which 
smoke  was  constantly  pouring,  and  occasionally  flames. 
The  second  mate  and  one  or  two  of  the  hands  remained 
near  the  house,  to  keep  a  look-out  on  the  vessel  and  other 
property. 

The  season  had  now  advanced  to  the  first  day  of  January, 
a  month  that  in  the  southern  hemisphere  corresponds  with 
our  own  July.  As  Roswell  picked  his  way  among  the  broken 
rocks  that  covered  the  ascent  to  what  might  be  termed  the 
table-land  of  the  island,  if  indeed  any  portion  ^f  so  ragged 
a  bit  of  this  earth  could  properly  be  so  named,  his  thoughts 


THE     SEA     LIONS.  213 

recurred  to  this  question  of  the  season,  and  to  the  proba 
bility  of  his  getting  a  cargo  before  it  would  be  absolutely 
necessary  to  go  to  the  northward.  On  the  whole,  he  fancied 
his  chances  good ;  and  such  he  found  to  be  Stimson's 
opinion,  when  this  experienced  sealer  was  questioned  on 
the  subject. 

"We've  begun  right  in  all  respects  but  one,  Captain 
Gar'ner,"  said  Stephen,  as  he  closed  his  remarks  on  the 
subject;  "and  even  in  that  matter  in  which  we  made  a 
small  mistake  at  the  outset,  we  are  improving,  and  I  hope 
will  come  out  right  in  the  end.  I  said  a  small  mistake,  but 
in  this  I  'm  wrong,  as  it  was  a  great  mistake." 

"And  what  was  it,  Stephen?  Make  no  bones  of  telling 
me  of  any  blunder  I  may  have  committed,  according  to 
your  views  of  duty.  You  are  so  much  older  than  myself, 
that  I  '11  stand  it." 

"Why,  sir,  it's  not  in  seamanship,  or  in  sealing;  if  it 
was,  I  'd  hold  my  tongue  ;  but  it 's  in  not  keeping  the  Lord's 
Day  from  the  hour  when  we  lifted  our  anchor  in  that  bay 
that  bears  the  name  of  your  family,  Captain  Gar'ner ;  and 
which  ought  to  be,  and  I  make  no  doubt  is,  dear  to  you  on 
that  account,  if  for  no  other  reason.  I  rather  think,  froiA 
what  they  tell  me,  that  the  old  Lord  Gar'ner  of  all  had 
much  preaching  of  the  word,  and  much  praying  to  the  Lord 
in  the  old  times,  when  he  lived  there." 

"  There  never  was  any  Lord  Gardiner  among  us,"  re 
turned  Roswell,  modestly,  "  though  it  was  a  fashion  among 
the  east-enders  to  give  that  title  to  the  owner  of  the  island. 
My  ancestor  who  first  got  the  place  was  Lyon  Gardiner,  an 
engineer  in  the  service  of  the  colony  of  Connecticut." 

"  Well,  whether  he  was  a  lion  or  a  lamb,  I'll  answer  for 
it  the  Lord  was  not  forgotten  on  that  island,  Captain  Gar' 
ner,  and  he  shouldn't  be  on  this.  No  man  ever  lost  any 
thing  in  this  world,  or  in  that  which  is  to  come  a'ter  it,  by 
remembering  once  in  seven  days  to  call  on  his  Creator  to 
help  him  on  in  his  path.  I  've  heard  it  said,  sir,  that  you  're 
a  little  partic'lar  like  in  your  idees  of  religion,  and  that  you 
do  not  altogether  hold  to  the  doctrines  that  are  preached 
up  and  down  the  land." 

Roswell  felt  his  cheeks  warm  at  this  remark,  and  he 
thought  of  Mary,  and  of  her  meek  reliance  on  that  Saviour 


214  THE     SEA     LIONS. 

whom,  in  the  pride  of  his  youth,  strength,  and  as  he  fancied 
of  his  reason  also,  he  doubted  about,  as  being  the  Son  of 
God.  The  picture  thus  presented  to  his  mind  had  its  plea* 
sant  and  its  unpleasant  features.  Strange  as  it  may  seem, 
it  is  certain  that  the  young  man  would  have  loved,  would 
have  respected  Mary  less  than  he  now  did,  could  he  imagine 
that  she  entertained  the  same  notions  on  this  very  subject 
as  those  he  entertained  himself!  Few  men  relish  infidelity 
in  a  woman,  whose  proper  sphere  would  seem  to  be  in  be 
lieving  and  in  worshipping,  and  not  in  cavilling,  or  in  split 
ting  straws  on  matters  of  faith.  Perhaps  it  is  that  we  are 
apt  to  associate  laxity  of  morals  with  laxity  of  belief,  and 
have  a  general  distaste  for  releasing  the  other  sex  from  any, 
even  the  smallest  of  the  restraints  that  the  dogmas  of  the 
church  impose ;  but  we  hold  it  to  be  without  dispute  that, 
with  very  few  exceptions,  every  man  would  prefer  that  the 
woman  in  whom  he  feels  an  interest  should  err  on  the  side 
of  bigotry  rather  than  on  that  of  what  is  called  liberalism 
in  points  of  religious  belief.  Thus  it  is  with  most  of  us, 
and  thus  was  it  with  Roswell  Gardiner.  He  could  not 
wonder  at  Mary's  rigid  notions,  considering  her  education; 
and,  on  the  whole,  he  rather  liked  her  the  better  for  them, 
at  the  very  moment  that  he  felt  they  might  endanger  his 
own  happiness.  If  women  thoroughly  understood  how  much 
of  their  real  power  and  influence  with  men  arises  from  theii 
seeming  dependence,  there  would  be  very  little  tolerance 
in  their  own  circles  for  those  among  them  who  are  for  pro 
claiming  their  independence  and  their  right  to  equality  in 
all  things. 

While  our  young  mariner  and  his  companion  were  work 
ing  their  way  up  to  the  table-land,  which  lay  fully  three 
hundred  feet  above  the  level  of  the  sea,  there  was  little 
opportunity  for  further  discourse,  so  rough  was  the  way, 
and  so  difficult  the  ascent.  At  the  summit,  however,  there 
was  a  short  pause,  ere  the  two  undertook  the  mountain 
proper,  and  they  came  to  a  halt  to  take  a  look  at  the  aspect 
of  things  around  them.  There  was  the  boat,  a  mere  white 
speck  on  the  water,  flying  away  with  a  fresh  northerly 
breeze  towards  the  volcano,  while  the  smoke  from  the  latter 
made  a  conspicuous  and  not  very  distant  land-mark.  Nearer 
at  home,  all  appeared  unusually  plain  for  a  region  in  which 


THE     SEA     LIONS.  215 

fogs  were  so  apt  to  prevail.  The  cove  lay  almost  beneath 
them,  and  the  schooner,  just  then,  struck  the  imagination 
of  her  commander  as  a  fearfully  small  craft  to  come  so  far 
from  home  and  to  penetrate  so  deep  among  the  mazes  of 
the  ice.  It  was  that  ice,  itself,  however,  that  attracted 
most  of  Roswell's  attention.  Far  as  the  eye  could  reach, 
north,  south,  east  and  west,  the  ocean  was  brilliant  and 
chill  with  the  vast  floating  masses.  The  effect  on  the  air 
was  always  perceptible  in  that  region,  '  killing  the  summer,' 
as  the  sealers  expressed  it ;  but  it  seemed  to  be  doubly  so 
at  the  elevation  to  which  the  two  adventurers  had  attained. 
Still,  the  panorama  was  magnificent.  The  only  part  of  the 
ocean  that  did  not  seem  to  be  alive  with  ice-bergs,  if  one 
may  use  such  an  expression,  was  the  space  within  the  group, 
and  that  was  as  clear  as  an  estuary  in  a  mild  climate.  It 
really  appeared  as  if  nature  had  tabooed  that  privileged 
spot,  in  order  that  the  communication  between  the  different 
islands  should  remain  open.  Of  course,  the  presence  of  so 
many  obstacles  to  the  billows  without,  and  indeed  even  to 
the  rake  of  the  winds,  produced  smooth  water  within,  the 
slow,  breath-like  heaving  and  setting  of  the  ceaseless  ground- 
swell,  being  the  only  perceptible  motion  to  the  water  in 
side. 

"  'Tis  a  very  remarkable  view,  Stephen,"  said  Roswell 
Gardiner,  "  but  there  will  be  one  much  finer,  if  we  can 
work  our  way  up  that  cone  of  a  mountain,  and  stand  on  its 
naked  cap.  I  wish  I  had  brought  an  old  ensign  and  a 
small  spar  along,  to  set  up  the  gridiron,  in  honour  of  the 
States.  We're  beginning  to  put  out  our  feelers,  old  Stim- 
son,  and  shall  have  'em  on  far  better  bits  of  territory  than 
this,  before  the  earth  has  gone  round  in  its  track  another 
hundred  years." 

"  Well,  to  my  notion,  Captain  Gar'ner,"  answered  the 
seaman,  following  his  officer  towards  the  base  of  the  cone, 
"  Uncle  Sam  has  got  more  land  now  than  he  knows  what 
to  do  with.  If  a  body  could  discover  a  bit  of  ocean,  or  a 
largish  sort  of  a  sea,  there  might  be  some  use  in  it.  Whales 
are  getting  to  be  skeary,  and  are  mostly  driven  off  their  old 
grounds  ;  and  as  for  the  seals,  you  must  bury  yourself,  craft 
and  all,  up  to  the  truck  in  ice,  to  get  a  smile  from  one  of 
their  good-lookin'  count'nances,  as  I  always  say." 
19 


216  THE     SEA     LIONS. 

"Fin  afraid,  Stephen,  it  is  all  over  with  the  discovery 
of  more  seas.  Even  the  moon,  they  now  say,  is  altogether 
without  water,  having  not  so  much  as  a  lake  or  a  large  pond 
to  take  a  duck  in." 

"  Without  water,  sir  1"  exclaimed  Stimson,  quite  aghast* 
"  If  'tis  so,  sir,  it  must  be  right,  since  the  same  hand  that 
made  the  moon  made  this  'arth,  and  all  it  contains.  But 
what  can  they  do  for  seafaring  folks  in  the  moon,  if  what 
you  tell  me,  Captain  Gar'ner,  is  the  truth  ?" 

"  They  must  do  without  them.  I  fancy  oil  and  skins  are 
not  very  much  in  demand  among  the  moonites,  Stephen. 
What's  that,  off  here  to  the  eastward,  eh?  East-and-by 
north-half-east,  or  sol" 

"  I  see  what  you  mean,  sir.  It  does  look  wonderfully  like 
a  sail,  and  a  sail  pretty  well  surrounded  by  ice,  too !" 

There  was  no  mistake  in  the  matter.  The  white  canvass 
of  a  vessel  was  plainly  visible,  over  a  vast  breadth  of  field- 
ice,  a  little  to  the  northward  of  the  island  that  lay  directly 
opposite  the  cove.  Although  the  sails  of  this  stranger  were 
spread,  it  was  plain  enough  he  was  closely  beset,  if  not 
actually  jammed.  From  the  first  instant  he  saw  the  strange 
craft,  Roswell  had  not  a  doubt  of  her  character.  He  felt 
convinced  it  was  his  late  consort,  the  Sea  Lion  of  the  Vine 
yard,  which  had  found  her  way  to  the  group  by  means  of 
some  hint  that  had  fallen  into  Daggett's  hands,  if  not  by  a 
positive  nautical  instinct.  So  great  had  been  his  own  suc 
cess,  however,  and  so  certain  did  he  now  feel  of  filling  up 
in  due  season,  that  he  cared  much  less  for  this  invasion 
on  his  privacy  than  he  would  have  done  a  fortnight  earlier. 
On  the  contrary,  it  might  be  a  good  thing  to  have  a  consort 
in  the  event  of  any  accident  occurring  to  his  own  vessel. 
From  the  moment,  then,  that  Gardiner  felt  certain  of  the 
character  of  the  strange  sail,  his  policy  was  settled  in  his 
own  mind.  It  was  to  receive  his  old  acquaintance  with 
good  will,  and  to  help  fill  him  up  too,  as  soon  as  he  had 
secured  his  own  cargo,  in  order  that  they  might  sail  for 
home  in  company.  By  his  aid  and  advice,  the  other  schooner 
might  save  a  week  in  time  at  that  most  important  season 
of  the  year ;  and  by  the  experience  and  exertions  of  his 
people,  a  whole  month  in  filling  up  might  readily  be 
gained, 


THE    SEA    LIONS.  217 

All  thoughts  of  climbing  the  peak  were  at  once  aban 
doned  ;  and,  in  fifteen  minutes  after  the  sail  was  seen, 
Roswell  and  Stephen  both  came  panting  down  to  the 
house ;  so  much  easier  is  it  to  descend  in  this  world  than 
to  mount.  A  swivel  was  instantly  loaded  and  fired  as  a 
signal ;  and,  in  half  an  hour,  a  boat  was  manned  and  ready. 
Roswell  took  command  himself,  leaving  his  second  mate 
to  look  after  the  schooner.  Stimson  went  with  his  captain, 
and  in  less  than  one  hour  after  he  had  first  seen  the  strange 
sail,  our  hero  was  actually  pulling  out  of  the  cove,  with  a 
view  to  go  to  her  assistance.  Roswell  Gardiner  was  as 
good-hearted  a  fellow  as  ever  lived.  He  had  a  sufficient 
regard  for  his  own  interests,  as  well  as  for  those  of  others 
entrusted  to  his  care  ;  but,  these  main  points  looked  after, 
he  would  cheerfully  have  worked  a  month  to  relieve  the 
Vineyard-men  from  the  peril  that  so  plainly  beset  them. 
Setting  his  sails  the  instant  the  boat  was  clear  of  the  rocks, 
away  he  went,  then,  as  fast  as  ash  and  canvass  could  carry 
him,  which  was  at  a  rate  but  little  short  of  eight  knots  in  the 
hour. 

As  he  was  thus  flying  towards  his  object,  our  young 
manner  formed  a  theory  in  his  own  mind,  touching  the 
drift  of  the  ice  in  the  adjacent  seas.  It  was  simply  this. 
He  had  sounded  in  entering  the  great  bay,  and  had  ascer 
tained  that  comparatively  shallow  water  existed  between 
the  south-eastern  extremity  of  Sealer's  Land  and  the  nearest 
island  opposite.  It  was  deep  enough  to  admit  the  largest 
vessel  that  ever  floated,  and  a  great  deal  more  than  this ; 
but  it  was  not  deep  enough  to  permit  an  ice-berg  to  pass. 
The  tides,  too,  ran  in  races  among  the  islands,  which  pre 
vented  the  accumulation  of  ice  at  the  southern  entrance, 
while  the  outer  currents  seemed  to  set  everything  past  the 
group  to  allow  of  the  floating  mountains  to  collect  to  the 
eastward,  where  they  appeared  to  be  thronged.  It  was  on 
the  western  verge  of  this  wilderness  of  ice-bergs  and  ice 
fields  that  the  strange  sail  had  been  seen  working  her  way 
towards  the  group,  which  must  be  plainly  in  view  from  hei 
decks,  as  her  distance  from  the  nearest  of  the  islands  cer 
tainly  did  not  exceed  two  leagues. 

It  required  more  than  two  hours  for  the  whale-boat  of 
Eoswell  to  cross  the  bay,  and  reach  the  margin  of  that  vast 


218  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

field  of  ice,  which  was  prevented  from  drifting  into  the 
open  space  only  by  encountering  the  stable  rocks  of  the 
first  of  the  group.  Every  eye  was  now  turned  in  quest  of 
an  opening,  by  means  of  which  it  might  be  possible  to  get 
further  to  the  eastward.  One,  at  length,  was  discovered, 
and  into  it  Gardiner  dashed,  ordering  his  boat's  crew  to 
stretch  themselves  out  at  their  oars,  though  every  man  with 
him  thought  they  were  plunging  into  possible  destruction. 
On  the  boat  went,  however,  now  sheering  to  starboard, 
now  to  port,  to  avoid  projecting  spurs  of  ice,  until  she  had 
ploughed  her  way  through  a  fearfully  narrow,  and  a  de 
viating  passage,  that  sometimes  barely  permitted  them  to 
go  through,  until  a  spot  was  reached  where  the  two  fields 
which  formed  this  strait  actually  came  in  close  crushing 
contact  with  each  other.  Roswell  took  a  look  before  and 
behind  him,  saw  that  his  boat  was  safe  owing  to  the  forma 
tion  of  the  two  outlines  of  the  respective  fields,  when  he 
sprang  upon  the  ice  itself,  bidding  the  boat-steerer  to  wait 
for  him.  A  shout  broke  out  of  the  lips  of  the  young  cap 
tain  the  instant  he  was  erect  on  the  ice.  There  lay  the 
schooner,  the  Martha's  Vineyard  craft,  within  half  a  mile 
of  him,  in  plain  sight,  and  in  as  plain  jeopardy.  She  was 
lammed,  with  every  prospect,  as  Roswell  thought,  of  being 
crushed,  ere  she  could  get  free  from  the  danger. 


THE    SEA    LIONS.  219 


CHAPTER  XVI. 

"A  sculler's  notch  in  the  stern  he  maae, 
An  oar  he  shaped  of  the  bottle  blade ; 
Then  sprung  to  his  seat  with  a  lightsome  leap 
And  launched  afar  on  the  calm,  blue  deep." 

The  Culprit  Fay. 

ROSWELL  was  hardly  on  the  ice  before  a  sound  of  a  most 
portentous  sort  reached  his  ear.  He  knew  at  once  that  the 
field  had  been  rent  in  twain  by  outward  pressure,  and  that 
some  new  change  was  to  occur  that  might  release  or  might 
destroy  the  schooner.  He  was  on  the  point  of  springing 
forward  in  order  to  join  Daggett,  when  a  call  from  the  boat 
arrested  his  steps. 

"  These  here  fields  are  coming  together,  Captain  Gar'ner, 
and  our  boat  will  soon  be  crushed  unless  we  get  it  out  of 
the  water." 

Sure  enough,  a  single  glance  behind  him  sufficed  to  as- 
sure  the  young  master  of  the  truth  of  this  statement.  The 
field  he  was  on  was  slowly  swinging,  bringing  its  western 
margin  in  closer  contact  with  the  eastern  edge  of  the  floe 
that  lay  within  it.  The  movement  could  be  seen  merely 
by  the  closing  of  the  channel  through  whrch  the  boat  had 
come,  and  by  the  cracking  and  crushing  of  the  ice  on  the 
edges  of  the  two  fields.  So  tremendous  was  the  pressure, 
however,  that  cakes  as  large  as  a  small  house  were  broken 
off,  and  forced  upward  on  the  surface  of  the  field,  or  ground 
into  small  fragments,  as  it  might  be  under  the  vice  of  a 
power  hitherto  unknown  to  the  spectators.  Slow  as  was 
the  movement  of  the  floe,  it  was  too  fast  to  allow  of  delay ; 


220  THE    SEA    LIONS, 

and,  finding  a  suitable  place,  the  boat  was  hauled  up,  and 
put  in  security  on  the  floe  that  lay  nearest  the  schooner. 

"  This  may  give  us  a  long  drag  to  get  back  into  the  wa 
ter,  Stimson,  and  a  night  out  of  our  bunks,"  said  Roswell, 
looking  about  him,  as  soon  as  the  task  was  achieved. 

"  I  do  not  know  that,  sir,"  was  the  answer.  "  It  seems 
to  me  that  the  floe  has  parted  alongside  of  them  rocks,  and 
if-so-be  that  should  turn  out  to  be  the  case,  the  whull  on 
us,  schooner,  boat,  and  all  hands,  may  drift  into  the  bay  ; 
for  that  there  is  a  current  setting  from  this  quarter  up  to 
wards  our  island,  I'm  sartain  of,  by  the  feel  of  my  oar,  as 
we  come  along." 

"It  may  be  so  —  the  currents  run  all  manner  of  ways, 
and  field-ice  may  pass  the  shoals,  though  a  berg  never  can. 
I  do  not  remember,  nevertheless,  to  have  ever  seen  even  a 
floe  within  the  group  —  nothing  beyond  large  cakes  that 
have  got  adrift  by  some  means  or  other." 

"  I  have,  sir,  though  only  once.  A  few  days  a'ter  we  got 
in,  when  I  was  ship-keeper,  and  all  hands  was  down  under 
the  rocks  of  the  north  eend,  a  field  come  in  at  the  northern 
entrance  of  the  bay,  and  went  out  at  the  southern.  It 
might  have  been  a  league  athwart  it,  and  it  drifted,  as  a 
body  might  say,  as  if  it  had  some  one  aboard  to  give  it  the 
right  sheer.  Touch  it  did  at  the  south  cape,  but  just  wind 
ing  as  handy  as  a  craft  could  have  done  it,  in  a  good  tide's 
way,  out  to  sea  it  went  ag'in,  bound  to  the  south  pole 
for-ti-'now." 

"  Well,  this  is  good  news,  and  may  be  the  means  of 
saving  the  Vineyard  craft  in  the  end.  We  do  seem  to  be 
setting  bodily  into  the  bay,  and  if  we  can  only  get  clear  of 
that  island,  I  do  not  see  what  is  to  hinder  it.  Here  is  a 
famous  fellow  of  a  mountain  to  the  northward,  coming 
down  before  the  wind,  as  one  might  say,  and  giving  us  a 
cant  into  the  passage.  I  should  think  that  chap  must  pro 
duce  some  sort  of  a  change,  whether  it  be  for  better  or 
worse." 

"Ay,  ay,  sir,"  put  in  Thompson,  who  acted  as  a  boat- 
steerer  at  need,  "  he  may  do  just  that,  but  it  is  all  he  can 
do.  Mr.  Green  and  I  sounded  out  from  the  cove  for  a 
league  or  more,  a  few  days  since,  and  we  found  less  than 
twenty  fathoms,  as  far  as  we  went.  That  chap  up  to  the 


THE     SEA     LIONS.  221 

aor'ard  there,  <*raws  something  like  a  hundred  fathoms,  if 
he  draws  an  inch.  He  shows  more  above  water  than  a  first- 
rate's  truck." 

"  That  does  he,  and  a  good  deal  to  spare.  Thompson, 
do  you  and  Todd  remain  here,  and  look  after  the  boat, 
while  the  rest  of  us  will  shape  our  course  for  the  schooner. 
She  seems  to  be  in  a  wicked  berth,  and  'twill  be  no  more 
than  neighbourly  to  try  to  get  her  out  of  it." 

Truly  enough  might  Roswell  call  the  berth  of  the  Sea 
Lion,  of  the  Vineyard,  by  any  expressive  name  that  implied 
danger.  When  the  party  reached  her,  they  found  the  situa 
tion  of  that  vessel  to  be  as  follows.  She  had  been  endea 
vouring  to  work  her  way  through  a  passage  between  two 
large  fields,  when  she  found  the  ice  closing,  and  that  she 
was  in  great  danger  of  being  '  nipped.'  Daggett  was  a 
man  of  fertile  resources,  and  great  decision  of  character. 
Perceiving  that  escape  was  impossible,  all  means  of  getting 
clear  being  rendered  useless  by  the  floes  soon  touching, 
both  before  and  behind  him,  he  set  about  adopting  the 
means  most  likely  to  save  his  vessel.  Selecting  a  spot 
where  a  curve,  in  the  margin  of  the  field  to  leeward,  pro 
mised  temporary  security,  at  least,  he  got  his  vessel  into  it, 
anchored  fast  to  the  floe.  Then  he  commenced  cutting 
away  the  ice,  by  means  of  axes  first,  and  of  saws  afterwards, 
in  the  hope  that  he  might  make  such  a  cavity  as,  by  its 
size  and  shape,  would  receive  the  schooner's  hull,  and  pre 
vent  her  destruction.  For  several  hours  had  he  and  his 
people  been  at  this  work,  when,  to  their  joy,  as  well  as  to 
their  great  astonishment,  they  were  suddenly  joined  by 
Roswell  and  his  party.  The  fact  was,  that  so  intently  had 
every  one  of  the  Vineyard  men's  faculties  been  absorbed 
by  their  own  danger,  and  so  much  was  each  individual 
occupied  by  his  own  duty,  that  not  a  man  among  them  had 
seen  the  boat,  or  even  any  of  the  crew,  until  Gardiner  called 
out  to  Daggett  as  he  approached,  announcing  his  presence 
by  his  voice. 

"  This  is  good  fortune,  truly,  Captain  Gar'ner,"  said 
Daggett,  shaking  his  brother  master  most  cordially  by  the 
hand ;  "  good  fortune,  do  I  call  it !  I  was  satisfied  that  I 
should  fall  in  with  you,  somewhere  about  this  group  of 
islands,  for  they  lie  just  about  where  my  late  uncle  had 


222  THE     SEA     LIONS. 

given  us  reason  to  suppose  some  good  sealing  ground 
might  be  met  with ;  but  I  did  not  hope  to  see  you  this 
morning.  You  observe  our  position,  Captain  Gar'ner; 
there  is  every  prospect  of  a  most  awful  nip !" 

"  There  is,  indeed,  though  I  see  you  have  been  making 
some  provision  for  it.  What  luck  have  you  had  in  digging 
a  slip  to  let  the  schooner  into?" 

"  Well,  we  might  have  had  worse,  though  better  would 
have  been  more  agreeable.  It's  plain  sailing,  so  long  as 
we  can  work  above  water,  and  you  see  we  've  cleared  a  fine 
berth  for  the  craft,  down  to  the  water's  edge ;  but,  below 
that,  't  is  blind  work  and  slow.  The  field  is  some  thirty 
feet  thick,  and  sawing  through  it  is  out  of  the  question. 
The  most  we  can  do  is  to  get  off  pieces  diagonally.  I  am 
not  without  hopes  that  we  have  done  enough  of  this  to  make 
a  wedge,  on  which  the  schooner  will  rise,  if  pressed  hard 
on  her  off-side.  I  have  heard  of  such  things,  Captain  Gar 
'ner,  though  I  cannot  say  I  ever  saw  it." 

"It's  a  ticklish  business  to  trust  to  such  a  protector; 
still,  a  great  deal  must  be  gained  by  cutting  away  so  much 
of  this  upper  ice,  and  it  is  possible  your  schooner  may  be 
lifted,  as  you  seem  to  expect.  Has  anything  been  done  to 
strengthen  the  craft  in-board  ?" 

"Not  as  yet;  though  I've  thought  of  that,  too.  But 
what  is  the  stoutest  ship  that  ever  floated,  against  the  press 
ure  of  such  an  enormous  field  of  ice?  Had  we  not  better 
keep  cutting  away?" 

"  You  can  continue  to  work  the  saw  and  the  axes,  but  I 
will  give  an  eye  to  strengthening  the  craft  in-board.  Just 
point  out  the  spars  and  plank  you  can  spare,  and  we'll  see 
what  can  be  done.  At  any  rate,  my  lads,  you  can  now 
work  with  the  certainty  that  your  lives  are  safe.  My  schoo 
ner  lies  about  six  leagues  from  you,  as  safely  moored  as  if 
she  lay  in  a  dock.  Come,  Captain  Daggett,  let  me  see 
your  spare  spars  and  plank." 

Great  encouragement  it  certainly  was  to  these  mariners, 
so  far  from  home,  and  in  their  imminently  perilous  condition, 
to  know  that  a  countryman  and  a  friend  was  so  near  them,  to 
afford  shelter  and  protection.  The  American  sailor  is  not 
a  cheering  animal,  like  his  English  relative,  but  he  quite  as 
clearly  understands  what  ought  to  be  received  with  congra 


THE     SEA     LIONS.  223 

tulation,  as  those  who  are  apt  to  make  more  noise.  The 
Vineyard  men,  in  particular,  were  habitually  quiet  and 
thoughtful,  there  being  but  one  seaman  in  the  craft  who 
did  not  husband  his  lay,  and  look  forward  to  meet  the  wants 
of  a  future  day.  This  is  the  result  of  education,  men  usu 
ally  becoming  quiet  as  they  gain  ideas,  and  feel  that  the 
tongue  has  been  given  to  us  in  order  to  communicate  them 
to  our  fellows.  Still,  the  joy  at  receiving  this  unlooked-for 
assistance  was  great  among  the  Vineyard  men,  and  each 
party  went  to  work  with  activity  and  zeal. 

The  task  of  Roswell  Gardiner  was  in-board,  while  that 
of  Daggett  and  his  men  continued  to  be  on  the  ice.  The 
latter  resumed  the  labour  of  cutting  and  sawing  the  field, 
and  of  getting  up  fenders,  or  skids,  to  protect  the  inner  side 
of  their  vessel  from  the  effects  of  a  '  nip.'  As  for  Gardiner, 
he  set  about  his  self-assumed  duty  with  great  readiness  and 
intelligence.  His  business  was  to  strengthen  the  craft,  by 
getting  supports  up  in  her  hold.  This  was  done  without 
much  difficulty,  all  the  upper  part  of  the  hold  being  clear 
and  easily  come  at.  Spars  were  cut  to  the  proper  length, 
plarik  were  placed  in  the  broadest  part  of  the  vessel,  oppo 
site  to  each  other,  and  the  spars  were  wedged  in  carefully, 
extending  from  side  to  side,  so  as  to  form  a  great  additional 
support  to  the  regular  construction  of  the  schooner.  In 
little  more  than  an  hour,  Roswell  had  his  task  accomplished, 
while  Daggett  did  not  see  that  he  could  achieve  much  more 
himself.  They  met  on  the  ice  to  consult,  and  to  survey 
the  condition  of  things  around  them. 

The  outer  field  had  been  steadily  encroaching  upon  the 
inner,  breaking  the  edges  of  both,  until  the  points  of  junc 
tion  were  to  be  traced  by  a  long  line  of  fragments  forced 
upward,  and  piled  high  in  the  air.  Open  spaces,  however, 
still  existed,  owing  to  irregularities  in  the  outlines  of  the 
two  floes ;  and  Daggett  hoped  that  the  little  bay  into  which 
he  had  got  his  schooner  might  not  be  entirely  closed,  ere  a 
shift  of  wind,  or  a  change  in  the  tides,  might  carry  away 
the  causes  of  the  tremendous  pressure  that  menaced  his 
security.  It  is  not  easy  for  those  who  are  accustomed  to 
look  at  natural  objects  in  their  more  familiar  aspects,  fully 
to  appreciate  the  vast  momentum  of  the  weight  that  was 
now  drifting  slowly  down  upon  the  schooner.  The  only 


224  THE     SEA    LIONS. 

ray  of  hope  was  to  be  found  in  the  deficiency  in  one  of  th« 
two  great  requisites  of  such  a  force.  Momentum  being 
weight,  multiplied  into  velocity,  there  were  some  glimpses 
visible,  of  a  nature  to  produce  a  slight  degree  of  expectation 
that  the  last  might  yet  be  resisted.  The  movement  was 
slow,  but  it  was  absolutely  grand,  by  its  steadiness  and 
power.  Any  one  who  has  ever  stood  on  a  lake  or  river 
shore,  and  beheld  the  undeviating  force  with  which  a  small 
cake  of  ice  crumbles  and  advances  before  a  breeze,  or  in  a 
current,  may  form  some  idea  of  the  majesty  of  the  move 
ment  of  a  field  of  leagues  in  diameter,  and  which  was  borne 
upon  by  a  gale  of  the  ocean,  as  well  as  by  currents,  and  by 
the  weight  of  drifting  ice-bergs  from  without.  It  is  true 
that  the  impetus  came  principally  from  a  great  distance, 
and  could  scarcely  be  detected  or  observed  by  those  around 
the  schooner ;  still,  these  last  were  fully  aware  of  the  whole 
character  of  the  danger,  which  each  minute  appeared  to 
render  more  and  more  imminent  and  imposing.  The  two 
fields  were  obviously  closing  still,  and  that  with  a  resistless 
power  that  boded  destruction  to  the  unfortunate  vessel. 
The  open  water  near  her  was  already  narrowed  to  a  space 
that  half  an  hour  might  suffice  to  close  entirely. 

"  Have  you  set  that  nearest  island  by  compass,  Daggett?" 
asked  Roswell  Gardiner,  as  soon  as  he  had  taken  a  good 
look  around  him.  "  To  me  it  seems  that  it  bears  more  to 
the  eastward  than  it  did  an  hour  since.  If  this  should  be 
true,  our  inner  field  here  must  have  a  very  considerable 
westerly  set." 

"  In  which  case  we  may  still  hope  to  drift  clear,"  returned 
Daggett,  springing  on  board  the  schooner,  and  running  aft 
to  the  binnacle,  Roswell  keeping  close  at  his  side.  "  By 
George!  it  is  as  you  say;  the  bearings  of  that  island  are 
altered  at  least  two  points !" 

"  In  which  case  our  drift  has  exceeded  a  league — Ha ! 
what  noise  is  that?  Can  it  be  an  eruption  of  the  volcano  ?" 

Daggett,  at  first,  was  inclined  to  believe  it  was  a  sound 
produced  by  some  of  the  internal  convulsions  of  the  earth, 
which  within,  as  if  in  mockery  of  the  chill  scene  that  pre 
vailed  without,  was  a  raging  volcano,  the  fierce  heats  of 
which  found  vent  at  the  natural  chimneys  produced  by  ita 


THE    SEA     LIONS.  2*25 

own  efforts.    This  opinion,  however,  did  not  last  long,  and 
fee  gave  expression  to  his  new  thoughts  in  his  answer. 

"  'T  is  the  ice,"  he  said.  "  I  do  believe  the  pressure  has 
caused  the  fields  to  part  on  the  rocks  of  that  island.  If  so, 
our  leeward  floe  may  float  away,  as  fast  as  the  weather  field 
approaches." 

"Hardly,"  said  Roswell,  gazing  intently  towards  the 
nearest  island  ;  "  hardly ;  for  the  most  weatherly  of  the  two 
will  necessarily  get  the  force  of  the  wind  and  the  impetus 
of  those  bergs  first,  and  make  the  fastest  drift.  It  may 
lessen  the  violence  of  the  nip,  but  I  do  not  think  it  will 
avert  it  altogether." 

This  opinion  of  Gardiner's  fully  described  all  that  sub 
sequently  occurred.  The  outer  floe  continued  its  inroads 
on  the  inner,  breaking  up  the  margins  of  both,  until  the 
channel  was  so  nearly  closed  as  to  bring  the  field  from 
which  the  danger  was  most  apprehended  in  absolute  con 
tact  with  the  side  of  the  schooner.  When  the  margin  of 
the  outer  floe  first  touched  the  bilge  of  the  schooner,  it  was 
at  the  precise  spot  where  the  vessel  had  just  been  fortified 
within.  Fenders  had  also  been  provided  without,  and  there 
was  just  a  quarter  of  a  minute,  during  which  the  two  cap 
tains  hoped  that  these  united  means  of  defence  might  ena 
ble  the  craft  to  withstand  the  pressure.  This  delusion 
lasted  but  a  moment,  however,  the  cracking  of  timbers  let 
ting  it  be  plainly  seen  that  the  force  was  too  great  to  be 
resisted.  For  another  quarter  of  a  minute,  the  two  masters 
held  their  breath,  expecting  to  see  the  deck  rise  beneath 
their  feet,  as  the  ice  rose  along  the  points  of  contact  be 
tween  the  floes.  Such,  in  all  probability,  would  have  been 
the  result,  had  not  the  pressure  brought  about  another 
change,  that  was  quite  as  much  within  the  influence  of  the 
laws  of  mechanical  forces,  though  not  so  much  expected. 
Owing  to  the  wedge-like  form  of  the  vessel's  bottom,  as 
well  as  to  the  circumstance  that  the  ice  of  the  outer  floe 
had  a  similar  shape,  projecting  beneath  the  schooner's  keel, 
the  craft  was  lifted  bodily,  with  an  upward  jerk,  as  if  she 
were  suddenly  released  from  some  imprisoning  power. 
Released  she  was,  indeed,  and  that  most  opportunely,  for 
another  half-minute  would  have  seen  her  ribs  broken  in, 
and  the  schooner  a  mangled  wreck.  As  she  now  rose, 


226  THE     SEA     LIONS. 

Roswell  gave  vent  to  bis  delight  in  a  loud  cry,  and  all 
hands  felt  that  the  occurrence  might  possibly  save  them. 
The  surge  upward  was  fearful,  and  several  of  the  men  were 
thrown  off  their  feet;  but  it  effectually  released  the  schoo 
ner  from  the  nip,  laying  her  gradually  up  in  the  sort  of 
dock  that  her  people  had  been  so  many  hours  preparing  for 
her  reception.  There  she  lay,  inclining  a  little,  partly  on 
her  bilge,  or  sewed,  as  seamen  term  it,  when  a  vessel  gets 
a  list  from  touching  the  ground  and  being  left  by  the  tide, 
neither  quite  upright,  nor  absolutely  on  her  beam-ends. 

No  sooner  was  the  vessel  thus  docked,  than  all  apprehen 
sion  of  receiving  further  injury  from  the  outer  floe  ceased. 
It  might  force  the  schooner  altogether  on  the  inner  field, 
driving  the  vessel  before  it,  as  an  avalanche  of  mud  in  the 
Alps  is  known  to  force  cottages  and  hamlets  in  its  front ; 
but  it  could  no  longer  '  nip7  it.  It  did  not  appear  probable 
to  the  two  masters,  however,  that  the  vessel  would  be  forced 
from  its  present  berth,  the  rending  and  cracking  of  the  ice 
sensibly  diminishing,  as  the  two  floes  came  closer  and  closer 
together.  Nor  was  this  all :  it  was  soon  very  obvious  that 
the  inner  field  was  drifting,  with  an  increased  motion,  into 
the  bay,  while  the  larger,  or  outer  floe,  seemed  to  hang, 
from  some  cause  or  other.  Of  the  fact  there  was  soon  no 
doubt,  the  fissure  beginning  to  open,  as  slowly  and  steadily 
as  it  had  closed,  but  noiselessly,  and  without  any  rending 
of  the  ice. 

"  We  shall  get  you  clear,  Daggett !  we  shall  get  you 
clear  !"  cried  Roswell,  with  hearty  good-will,  forgetting,  in 
that  moment  of  generous  effort,  all  feelings  of  competition 
and  rivalry.  "  I  know  what  you  are  after,  my  good  fellow 
— have  understood  it  from  the  first.  Yonder  high  land  ig 
the  spot  you  seek  ;  and  along  the  north  shore  of  that  island 
are  elephants,  lions,  dogs,  bears,  and  other  animals,  to  fill 
up  all  the  craft  that  ever  came  out  of  the  Vineyard V 

"  This  is  hearty,  Gar'ner,"  returned  the  other,  giving 
his  brother  master  a  most  cordial  shake  of  the  hand,  "  and 
it 's  just  what  I  like.  Sealing  is  a  sociable  business,  and  a 
craft  should  never  come  alone  into  these  high  latitudes 
Accidents  will  happen  to  the  most  prudent  man  living,  as 
you  see  by  what  has  just  befallen  me ;  for,  to  own^the  truth, 
we've  had  a  narrow  chance  of  it!" 


THE     SE  4     LIONS, 

The  reader  will  remember  that  all  which  Daggett  now 
paid,  was  uttered  by  a  man  who  saw  his  vessel  lying  on  the 
ice,  with  a  list  that  rendered  it  somewhat  difficult  to  move 
about  on  her  deck,  and  still  in  circumstances  that  would 
have  caused  half  the  navigators  of  this  world  to  despair. 
Such  was  not  the  fact  with  Daggett,  however.  Seven 
thousand  miles  from  home,  alone,  in  an  unknown  sea,  and 
uncertain  of  ever  rinding  the  place  he  sought,  this  man  had 
picked  his  way  among  mountains  and  fields  of  ice,  with 
perhaps  less  hesitation  and  reluctance  than  a  dandy  would 
encounter  the  perils  of  a  crossing,  when  the  streets  were  » 
little  moistened  by  rain.  Even  then,  with  his  vessel  lite 
rally  shelfed  on  the  ice,  certain  that  she  had  been  violently 
nipped,  he  was  congratulating  himself  on  reaching  a  seal 
ing  ground,  from  which  he  could  never  return  without  en 
countering  all  the  same  dangers  over  again.  As  for  Ros- 
well,  he  laughed  a  little  at  the  other's  opinion  of  the  sealing 
business,  for  he  was  morally  certain  the  Vineyard-man 
would  have  kept  the  secret,  had  it  been  in  his  possession 
alone. 

"Well,  well,  we'll  forget  the  past,"  he  said,  "all  but 
what  we've  done  to  help  one  another.  You  stood  by  me 
off  Hatteras,  and  I  've  been  of  some  service  to  you  here. 
You  know  how  it  is  in  our  calling,  Daggett;  first  come, 
first  served.  I  got  here  first,  and  have  had  the  cream  of 
the  business  for  this  season ;  though  I  do  not  by  any  means 
wish  to  be  understood  as  saying  that  you  are  too  late." 

"  I  hope  not,  Gar'ner.  'T  would  be  vexatious  to  have 
all  this  risk  and  trouble  for  nothing.  How  much  ile  have 
you  stowed  ?" 

"All  my  ground-tier,  and  a  few  riders.  It  is  with  the 
skins  that  we  are  doing  the  best  business." 

Daggett's  eyes  fairly  snapped  at  this  announcement, 
which  aroused  all  his  professional  ambition,  to  say  nothing 
of  that  propensity  to  the  "  root  of  all  evil,"  which  had  be 
come  pretty  thoroughly  incorporated  with  his  moral  being, 
by  dint  of  example,  theory,  and  association.  We  have  fre 
quently  had  occasion  to  remark  how  much  more '  enjoyable/ 
for  the  intellectual  and  independent,  is  a  country  on  the 
decline,  than  a  country  on  the  advance.  The  one  is  accu* 
mutating  that  wealth  which  the  other  has  already  possessed 
20 


£28  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

and  improved ;  and  men  cease  to  dwell  so  much  on  riches 
in  their  inmost  souls,  when  the  means  of  obtaining  them 
would  seem  to  have  got  beyond  their  reach.  This  is  one 
of  the  secrets  of  the  universal  popularity  of  Italy  with  the 
idle  and  educated  ;  though  the  climate,  and  the  monuments, 
and  the  recollections,  out  of  doubt,  contribute  largely  to  its 
charms.  Nevertheless,  man,  as  a  rule,  is  far  more  removed 
from  the  money-getting  mania  in  Italy,  than  in  almost  any 
other  portion  of  the  Christian  world ;  and  this  merely  be 
cause  the  time  of  her  wealth  and  power  has  gone  by,  leav 
ing  in  its  train  a  thousand  fruits,  that  would  seem  to  be  the 
most  savoury,  as  the  stem  on  which  they  grew  would  appear 
to  be  approaching  its  decay.  On  Martha's  Vineyard,  how 
ever,  aud  in  no  part  of  the  Great  Republic,  indeed,  has  this 
waning  season  yet  commenced,  and  the  heart  of  man  is  still 
engrossed  with  those  desires  that  are  to  produce  the  means 
which  are  to  lay  the  foundations  for  the  enjoyment  of  ge 
nerations  to  come. 

"  That's  luck,  indeed,  for  a  craft  so  early  in  the  season," 
returned  Daggett,  when  his  eyes  had  done  snapping.  "Are 
the  critturs  getting  to  be  wild  and  skeary?" 

"  Not  more  so  than  the  day  we  began  upon  them.  1 
have  taken  the  greatest  care  to  send  none  but  my  most  ex 
perienced  hands  out  to  kill  and  skin,  and  their  orders  have 
been  rigid  to  give  as  little  alarm  as  possible.  If  you  wish 
to  fill  up,  I  would  advise  you  to  take  the  same  precautions, 
for  the  heel  of  the  season  is  beginning  to  show  itself." 

"  I  will  winter  here,  but  I  get  a  full  craft,"  said  Daggett, 
with  a  resolute  manner,  if  not  absolutely  serious  in  what 
he  said.  "  Trouble  enough  have  I  had  to  find  the  group, 
and  we  Vineyard-men  don't  relish  the  idee  of  being  out 
done." 

<cYou  would  be  done  up,  my  fine  fellow,"  answered 
Roswell,  laughing,  "  did  you  attempt  to  pass  a  winter  here. 
The  Sea  Lion  of  Humse's  Hull  would  not  herself  keep  you 
in  fuel,  and  you  would  have  to  raft  it  off  next  summer  on 
your  casks,  or  remain  here  for  ever." 

"  I  suppose  a  body  might  expect  to  see  you  back  againv 
another  season,"  observed  Daggett,  glancing  meaningly  to 
wards  his  companion,  as  if  he  had  seriously  revolved  so 
desperate  a  plan  in  his  mind.  "  'Tisn't  often  that  a  sealer 


THE    SEA    LJONS.  220 

lets  a  station  like  that  you've  described  drop  out  of  his  re* 
collection  in  a  single  v'y'ge." 

"  I  may  be  back  or  I  may  not" — said  Roswell,  just  then 
remembering  Mary,  and  wondering  if  she  would  continue 
to  keep  him  any  longer  in  suspense,  should  he  return  suc 
cessful  from  his  present  adventure—"  That  will  depend  on 
others  more  than  on  myself.  I  wish,  however,  now  we  are 
both  here,  and  there  can  no  longer  be  any  '  hide  and  go 
seek'  between  us,  that  you  would  tell  me  how  you  came  to 
know  anything  about  this  cluster  of  islands,  or  of  the  seals 
then  and  there  to  be  found  ?" 

"  You  forget  my  uncle,  who  died  on  Oyster  Pond,  and 
whose  effects  I  crossed  over  to  claim  ?" 

"  I  remember  him  very  well — saw  him  often  while  living, 
and  helped  to  bury  him  when  dead." 

"  Well,  our  information  came  from  him.  He  threw  out 
several  hints  consarning  sealing-grounds  aboard  the  brig 
in  which  he  came  home ;  and  you  needn't  be  told,  Gar'ner, 
that  a  hint  of  that  kind  is  sartain  to  find  its  way  through 
all  the  ports  down  east.  But  hearing  that  there  was  new 
sealing-ground  wasn't  knowing  where  to  find  it.  I  should 
have  been  at  a  loss,  wasn't  it  for  the  spot  on  my  uncle's 
chart  that  had  been  rubbed  over  lately,  as  I  concluded,  to 
get  rid  of  some  of  his  notes.  You  know,  as  well  as  I  do, 
that  the  spot  was  in  this  very  latitude  and  longitude,  and 
so  I  came  here  to  look  for  the  much-desired  land." 

"And  you  have  undertaken  such  an  outfit,  and  come  this 
long  distance  into  an  icy  sea,  on  information  as  slight  as 
this!"  exclaimed  Roswell,  astonished  at  this  proof  of  saga 
city  and  enterprise,  even  in  men  who  are  renowned  for 
scenting  dollars  from  pole  to  pole. 

"  On  this,  with  a  few  hints  picked  up,  here  and  there, 
among  some  of  the  old  gentleman's  papers.  He  was  fond 
of  scribbling,  and  I  have  got  a  sort  of  a  chart  that  he 
scratched  on  a  leaf  of  his  bible,  that  was  made  to  represent 
this  very  group,  as  I  can  now  see." 

"  Then  you  could  have  had  no  occasion  for  the  printed 
chart,  with  the  mark  of  obliteration  on  it,  and  did  not  come 
here  on  that  authority  after  all." 

"  There  you  're  wrong,  Captain  Gar'ner.  The  chart  of 
the  group  had  no  latitude  or  longitude,  but  just  placed  each 


£30  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

island  with  its  bearings  and  distances  from  the  other  i&landa. 
It  was  no  help  in  finding  the  place,  which  might  be  in  one 
hemisphere  as  well  as  in  the  other." 

"  It  was,  then,  the  mark  of  the  obliteration " 

"  Marks,  if  you  please,  Captain  Gar'ner,"  interrupted 
the  other,  significantly.  "  My  uncle  talked  a  good  deal 
aboard  of  that  brig  about  other  matters  besides  sealing. 
We  think  several  matters  have  been  obliterated  from  the 
old  chart,  and  we  intend  to  look  'em  all  up.  It 's  our  right, 
you  know,  seeing  that  the  old  man  was  Vineyard-born,  and 
we  are  his  nearest  of  kin." 

"  Certainly"  —  rejoined   Roswell,  laughing   again,  but 
somewhat  more  faintly  than  before.    "  Every  man  for  him 
self  in  this  world  is  a  good  maxim;  it  being  pretty  certain 
if  we  do  not  take  care  of  ourselves,  no  one  will  take  care 
of  us." 

"  Yes,  sir,"  said  Stimson,  who  was  standing  near ;  "  there 
is  one  to  care  for  every  hair  of  our  heads,  however  forgetful 
and  careless  we  may  be  ourselves.  Wasn't  it  for  this,  Cap 
tain  Gar'ner,  there 's  many  a  craft  that  comes  into  these 
seas  that  would  never  find  its  way  out  of  'em ;  and  many  a 
bold  sailor,  with  a  heart  boiling  over  with  fun  and  frolic, 
that  would  be  frozen  to  an  ice-cicle  every  year !" 

Gardiner  felt  the  justice  of  this  remark,  and  easily  par 
doned  its  familiarity  for  its  truth.  In  these  sealers  the  dis 
cipline  is  by  no  means  of  that  distant  and  military  or  naval 
character  that  is  found  in  even  an  ordinary  merchantman. 
As  every  seaman  has  an  interest  in  the  result  of  the  voyage, 
some  excuse  was  made  for  this  departure  from  the  more 
general  usage ;  and  this  familiarity  itself  never  exceeded 
the  bounds  that  were  necessary  to  the  observance  of  duty. 

"Ay,  ay,"  returned  Roswell,  smiling — "  in  one  sense  you 
are  right  enough;  but  Captain  Daggett  and  myself  were 
speaking  of  human  affairs,  as  human  affairs  are  carried  on. 
— Is  not  this  inner  field  drifting  fast  away  from  the  outer, 
Daggett?  If  so,  we  shall  go  directly  into  the  bay !" 

It  was  as  Gardiner  thought.  By  some  means  that  were 
not  apparent,  the  floes  were  now  actually  separating,  and  at 
a  rate  of  movement  which  much  exceeded  that  of  their 
junction.  All  idea  of  further  danger  from  the  outer  field 
disappeared,  as  a  matter  of  course. 


THE     SEA    LIONS.  23) 

"  It's  so,  Captain  Gar'ner,"  said  Stimson,  respectfully, 
but  with  point;  "  and  who  and  what  brought  it  about  for 
our  safety  and  the  preservation  of  this  craft? — I  just  ventur 
to  ask  that  question,  sir." 

"  It  may  be  the  hand  of  Providence,  my  good  fellow ;  for 
I  very  frankly  own  I  can  see  no  direct  physical  cause. 
Nevertheless,  I  fancy  it  would  be  found  that  the  tides  or 
currents  have  something  to  do  with  it,  if  the  truth  could  be 
come  at." 

"  Well,  sir,  and  who  causes  the  tides  and  currents  to 
run,  this-a-way  and  that-a-way  f ' 

"  There  you  have  me,  Stephen;  for  I  never  could  get 
hold  of  the  clew  to  their  movements  at  all,"  answered  Ros- 
well,  laughing.  "There  is  a  reason  for  it  all,  I  dare  say,  if 
one  could  only  find  it  out.  Captain  Daggett,  it  is  high  time 
to  look  after  the  safety  of  your  schooner.  She  ought  to  be 
in  the  cove  before  night  sets  in,  since  the  ice  has  found  its 
way  into  the  bay." 

This  appeal  produced  a  general  movement.  By  this  time 
the  two  fields  were  a  hundred  fathoms  asunder ;  the  smaller, 
or  that  on  which  the  vessel  lay,  drifting  quite  fast  into  the 
bay,  under  the  joint  influences  of  wind  and  current ;  while 
the  larger  floe  had  clearly  been  arrested  by  the  islands. 
This  smaller  field  was  much  lessened  in  surface,  in  conse 
quence  of  having  been  broken  at  the  rocks,  though  the 
fragment  that  was  thus  cut  off  was  of  more  than  a  league 
in  diameter,  and  of  a  thickness  that  exceeded  many 
yards. 

As  for  the  Sea  Lion  of  the  Vineyard,  she  was  literally 
shelfed,  as  has  been  said.  So  irresistible  had  been  the 
momentum  of  the  great  floe,  that  it  lifted  her  out  of  the 
water  as  two  or  three  hands  would  run  up  a  bark  canoe  on 
a  gravelly  beach.  This  lifting  process  had,  very  fortunately 
for  the  craft,  been  effected  by  an  application  of  force  from 
below,  in  a  wedge-like  manner,  and  by  bringing  the  strongest 
defences  of  the  vessel  to  meet  the  power.  Consequently,  no 
essential  injury  had  been  done  the  vessel  in  thus  laying  her 
on  her  screw-dock. 

"  If  a  body  could  get  the  craft  of  as  easily  as  she  was 
got  OH,"  observed  Daggett,  as  he  and  Roswell  Gardiner 
stood  looking  at  the  schooner's  situation,  "  it  would  be  but 
20* 


232  THE    SEA    LIONS 

a  light  job.  But,  as  it  is,  she  lies  on  ice  at  least  twenty  feet 
thick,  and  ice  that  seems  as  solid  as  flint !" 

"  We  know  it  is  not  quite  as  hard  as  that,  Daggett,"  was 
Roswell's  reply ;  "  for  our  saws  and  axes  make  great  havoc 
in  it,  when  we  can  fairly  get  at  it." 

"  If  one  could  get  fairly  at  it !  But  here  you  see,  Gar'- 
ner,  everything  is  under  water,  and  an  axe  is  next  to  use 
less.  Nor  can  the  saws  be  used  with  much  advantage  on 
ice  so  thick." 

"  There  is  no  help  for  it  but  hard  work  and  great  perse 
verance.  I  would  advise  that  a  saw  be  set  at  work  at  each 
end  of  the  schooner,  allowing  a  little  room  in  case  of  acci 
dents,  and  that  we  weaken  the  foundation  by  two  deep  cuts. 
The  weight  of  the  vessel  will  help  us,  and  in  time  she  will 
settle  back  into  her  '  native  element,'  as  the  newspapers 
have  it." 

There  was,  indeed,  no  other  process  that  promised  suc 
cess,  and  the  advice  of  Gardiner  was  followed.  In  the 
course  of  the  next  two  hours  deep  cuts  were  made  with  the 
saws,  which  were  pushed  so  low  as  to  reach  quite  to  the 
bottom  of  the  cak'e.  This  could  be  done  only  by  what  the 
sailors  called  "jury-handles,"  or  spars  secured  to  the  plates. 
The  water  offered  the  principal  obstacle,  for  that  lay  on  the 
shelf  at  least  five  feet  deep.  Perseverance  and  ingenuity, 
however,  finally  achieved  their  aim.  A  cracking  was  heard, 
the  schooner  slowly  righted,  and  settled  off  into  the  sea 
again,  as  easily  and  harmlessly  as  if  scientifically  launched. 
The  fenders  protected  her  sides  and  copper,  though  the 
movement  was  little  more  than  slowly  sinking  on  the  frag 
ment  of  the  cake,  which,  by  means  of  the  cuts,  had  been 
gradually  so  much  reduced  as  to  be  unable  to  uphold  so 
great  a  weight.  It  was  merely  reversing  the  process  of 
breaking  the  camel's  back,  by  laying  the  last  feather  on 
his  load. 

This  happy  conclusion  to  several  hours  of  severe  toil, 
occurred  just  as  the  field  had  drifted  abreast  of  the  cove, 
and  was  about  the  centre  of  the  bay.  Hazard  came  up  also 
at  that  point,  on  his  return  from  the  volcano,  altering  hia 
course  a  little  to  speak  the  strangers.  The  report  of  the 
mate  concerning  his  discoveries  was  simple  and  brief. 
There  was  a  volcano,  and  one  in  activity ;  but  it  had  no- 


THE     SEA     LIONS. 


233 


thing  remarkable  about  it.  No  seal  were  seen,  and  there 
was  little  to  reward  one  for  crossing  the  bay.  Sterility,  and 
a  chill  grandeur,  were  the  characteristics  of  all  that  region ; 
and  these  were  not  wanting  to  any  part  of  the  group.  Just 
as  the  sun  was  setting,  Gardiner  piloted  his  companion  into 
the  cove ;  and  the  two  Sea  Lions  were  moored  amicably 
side  by  side,  and  that  too  at  a  spot  where  thousands  of  the 
veal  animals  were  to  be  found  within  a  league. 


CHAPTER  XYIL 

«  The  morning  air  blows  fresh  on  him ; 

The  waves  dance  gladly  in  his  sight; 
The  sea-birds  call,  and  wheel,  and  skim— 
O,  blessed  morning  light!" 

DANA. 

THE  very  day  succeeding  the  arrival  of  the  Sea  Lion  of 
the  Vineyard,  even  while  his  mate  was  clearing  the  vessel, 
Daggett  had  a  gang  on  the  north  shore,  killing  and  skin 
ning.  As  Roswell's  rules  were  rigidly  observed,  no  other 
change  was  produced  by  this  accession  to  the  force  of  the 
sealers,  than  additional  slaughter.  Many  more  seals  were 
killed,  certainly,  but  all  was  done  so  quietly  that  no  great 
alarm  was  awakened  among  the  .doomed  animals  them 
selves.  One  great  advantage  was  obtained  by  the  arrival 
of  the  new  party  that  occasioned  a  good  deal  of  mirth  at 
first,  but  which,  in  the  end,  was  found  to  be  of  great  im 
portance  to  the  progress  of  the  work.  Daggett  had  taken 
to  pieces  and  brought  with  him  the  running  part  of  a  com 
mon  country  wagon,  which  was  soon  found  of  vast  service 
in  transporting  the  skins  and  blubber  across  the  rocks. 
The  wheels  were  separated,  leaving  them  in  pairs,  and 
each  axle  was  loaded  with  a  freight  that  a  dozen  men 
would  hardly  have  carried,  when  two  or  three  hands  would 
drag  in  the  load,  with  an  occasional  lift  from  other  gangs, 
to  get  them  up  a  height,  or  over  a  cleft.  This  portion  of 
the  operation  was  found  to  work  admirably,  owing,  in  a 


234  THE     SEA    LIONS. 

great  measure,  to  the  smooth  surfaces  of  the  rocks ;  and 
unquestionably  these  wheels  advanced  the  business  of  the 
season  at  least  a  fortnight;  —  Gardiner  thought  a  month. 
It  rendered  the  crews  better  natured,  too,  much  diminish 
ing  their  toil,  and  sending  them  to  their  bunks  at  night  in 
a  far  better  condition  for  rest  than  they  otherwise  could 
have  been. 

Just  one  month,  or  four  weeks  to  a  day,  after  the  second 
schooner  got  in,  it  being  Sunday  of  course,  Gardiner  and 
Daggett  met  on  the  platform  of  a  perfectly  even  rock  that 
lay  stretched  for  two  hundred  yards  directly  beneath  the 
house.  It  was  in  the  early  morning.  Notwithstanding 
there  was  a  strong  disposition  to  work  night  and  day  on 
the  part  of  the  new-comers,  Roswell's  rule  of  keeping  the 
Sabbath  as  a  day  of  rest  had  prevailed,  and  the  business 
of  washing,  scrubbing  and  shaving,  had  just  commenced. 
As  for  the  two  masters,  they  required  fewer  ablutions  than 
their  men,  had  risen  earlier,  and  were  already  dressed  for 
the  day. 

"  To-morrow  will  be  the  first  day  of  February,"  said 
Daggett,  when  the  salutations  of  the  morning  were  passed, 
"  and  I  was  calculating  my  chances  of  getting  full  this  sea 
son.  You  will  be  full  this  week,  I  conclude,  Gar'ner?" 

"  We  hope  to  be  so,  by  the  middle  of  it,"  was  the  an 
swer.  "  I  think  the  seal  are  getting  to  be  much  shyer  than 
they  were,  and  am  afraid  we  shall  demonstrate  that  '  the 
more  haste  is  the  worse  speed.' " 

"  What  is  that  to  you?"  returned  Daggett  quickly.  "  Of 
course  you  will  sail  for  home  as  soon  as  you  can  get  off." 

Gardiner  did  not  like  the  "  of  course,"  which  was  indi 
rectly  saying  what  the  other  would  do  himself  under  similar 
circumstances.  Still,  it  caused  no  difference  in  his  owa 
decision,  which  had  been  made  up  under  the  influence  of 
much  reflection,  and  of  a  great  deal  of  good  feeling. 

"  I  shall  do  no  such  thing,  Captain  Daggett,"  was  the 
answer.  *'  I  do  not  fancy  the  idea  of  leaving  a  fellow- 
creature,  a  countryman  —  nay,  I  might  say,  a  neighbour, 
on  this  lone  spot,  with  the  uncertainty  of  his  ever  getting 
out  of  it.  If  you  can  come  to  some  understanding  with 
my  officers  and  crew,  I  will  keep  the  schooner  here  until 
we  are  both  full,  and  ready  to  sail  in  company." 


THE     SEA     LIONS.  235 

"  In  which  case  you  would  nat'rally  ask  a  lay  for  your 
self?" 

"  Naturally,  perhaps,  I  might,"  returned  Roswell,  smil 
ing,  "  though  positively,  I  shall  not.  Not  one  of  us  in  the 
cabin  will  look  for  any  other  advantage  than  your  good 
company.  I  have  talked  this  matter  over  with  my  mates, 
and  they  say  that  the  advantage  of  having  a  consort  in 
getting  through  the  ice  is  sufficient  to  justify  us  in  holding 
on  two  or  three  weeks  longer.  With  the  men,  it  will  be  a 
little  different,  perhaps ;  and  they  will  require  some  pay. 
The  poor  fellows  live  by  their  hands,  and  what  their  hands 
do  they  will  expect  to  be  compensated  for." 

"  They  shall  have  good  lays,  depend  on  it.  As  for  your 
self,  Captain  Gar'ner,  I  trust  my  owners  will  not  forget  to 
do  what  is  right,  if  we  ever  get  home,  and  meet  with  luck 
in  the  market." 

"  Never  fear  for  me,  Daggett.  I  look  for  my  reward  in 
the  bright  eyes  and  pleasant  smiles  of  as  excellent  a  girl  as 
Long  Island  can  produce.  Mary  never  fails  to  reward  me 
in  that  way  whenever  I  do  right.  It  is  right  to  stand  by 
you  just  now — to  do  as  I  would  be  done  by  :  and  I  '11  do  it. 
Set  the  thing  down  as  decided,  but  make  your  bargain  with 
my  men.  And  now,  Daggett,  what  say  you  to  climbing 
yonder  mountain  to-day,  by  way  of  getting  a  good  survey 
of  our  territories,  as  well  as  to  take  a  look  at  the  state  of 
the  ice?" 

Daggett  assented  very  cheerfully,  his  mind  being  greatly 
relieved  by  this  assurance  of  standing  by  him,  on  the  part 
of  Roswell ;  for  he  had  been  undecided  whether  to  remain 
after  the  departure  of  the  other  schooner  or  not.  All  was 
now  clear  to  him,  however,  and  the  two  masters  made  their 
preparations  to  ascend  the  mountain  as  soon  as  they  had 
breakfasted.  Stimson  was  summoned  to  be  of  the  party, 
his  officer  having  got  to  be  accustomed  to,  and  desirous  of, 
his  company. 

For  the  first  two  hours  after  quitting  the  house,  Gardi 
ner,  Daggett,  and  the  boat-steerer,  were  busily  employed 
in  working  their  way  across  the  broken  surface  of  the 
island,  to  the  base  of  the  cone-like  pinnacle  that  formed 
the  apex  of  all.  There  they  rested,  and  took  a  little  re 
freshment,  conversing  the  while  on  the  state  of  the  ice  in 


236  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

the  offing,  so  far  as  the  last  could  be  seen  from  their  pre 
sent  elevation. 

"  We  shall  have  a  sharp  hill  to  climb,  should  we  succeed 
in  getting  up  here,"  observed  Roswell,  "  though  the  rocks 
appear  to  be  quite  clear  of  snow  just  now." 

"  Just  now,  or  never.  This  is  the  antarctic  dog-days, 
Gar'ner,"  answered  Daggett,  laughing,  "and  we  must  make 
the  most  of  them.  A  man  can  move  about  without  his  pee- 
jacket  at  noon-day,  and  that  is  something  gained ;  for,  I 
have  heard  of  ice  making  in  the  bays,  even  at  mid-sum 
mer." 

"  We  are  not  in  a  high  enough  latitude  for  that,  thank 
heaven,  though  pretty  well  south  too.  This  is  our  harvest- 
time  here,  sure  enough,  and  we  had  better  look  to  it." 

As  Gardiner  said  this,  the  eyes  of  all  three  were  turned 
on  the  sterile  scene  around  them.  The  island  was  not 
absolutely  destitute  of  vegetation,  as  is  the  case  a  few  de 
grees  further  south ;  but  it  might  be  said  to  be  nearly  so. 
A  few  stunted  plants  were  to  be  seen  in  the  fissures  of  the 
rocks,  and  a  little  soil  had  been  made,  seemingly  by  the 
crumbling  of  the  stones,  in  which  a  wiry  grass  occasionally 
showed  itself.  As  for  the  mountain,  however,  it  was  mostly 
bare ;  and  when  our  party  began  to  climb,  the  ascent  was 
not  only  difficult,  but  in  places  dangerous.  Roswell  had 
foreseen  this,  and  he  had  made  a  provision  accordingly. 
In  addition  to  his  lance,- used  as  a  leaping-staff  arid  walk 
ing-pike,  each  man  had  a  small  coil  of  ratlin-stuff  thrown 
over  his  shoulder,  in  order  to  help  him  in  difficult  places, 
or  enable  him  to  help  his  companions.  It  was  in  the  de 
scent  chiefly  that  these  ropes  were  expected  to  be  of  ser 
vice,  though  their  utility  was  made  apparent  ere  the  three 
reached  the  summit.  The  ascent  of  a  mountain  a  thousand 
feet  in  height  is  no  great  exploit  under  ordinary  circum 
stances.  Even  when  there  are  precipitous  cliffs,  gorges, 
ravines  and  broken  masses,  youth,  activity  and  courage 
will  commonly  overcome  all  the  difficulties,  placing  the 
foot  of  man  on  eminences  that  nature  would  appear  to 
have  intended  solely  for  the  dominion  of  the  goat.  Thus 
did  it  turn  out  with  the  three  sealers,  all  of  whom  stood  on 
the  bald  cap  of  that  mountain,  after  a  vigorous  and  some 
what  hazardous  ascent,  that  occupied  rather  more  than  an 


THE     SEA    LIONS.  237 

hour.  They  had  greatly  aided  each  other  in  achieving 
their  purpose,  to  be  sure ;  and  the  ratlin-stuff  was  found 
of  use  on  more  than  one  occasion. 

An  extraordinary,  and,  considering  the  accessories,  a 
most  brilliant  view,  rewarded  the  adventurers.  But,  after 
a  few  minutes  passed  in  pure  admiration  of  what  they  be 
held,  the  minds  of  all  three  adverted  to  the  parts  which 
gave  such  unusual  splendour  to  the  panorama.  Icebergs 
were  visible  on  all  sides  of  them,  the  great  bay  excepted; 
and  the  group  was  surrounded  by  them,  in  a  way  that  would 
seem  to  proclaim  a  blockade.  At  that  season,  the  south 
winds  prevailed,  though  changes  were  frequent  and  sudden, 
and  the  vast  frozen  fleet  was  drifting  north.  Gardiner  saw 
that  the  passage  by  which  he  had  brought  in  his  schooner 
was  now  completely  closed,  and  that  the  only  means  of  exit 
from  the  bay  was  by  its  northern  outlet.  The  great  depth 
of  the  bergs  still  prevented  their  coming  within  the  cluster 
of  islands,  while  their  number  and  size  completely  stopped 
the  floes  from  passing. 

To  the  northward,  the  sea  was  much  more  open.  Gar 
diner  and  Daggett  both  thought,  as  they  gazed  in  that  di 
rection,  that  it  would  be  easy  enough  to  take  a  vessel 
through  the  difficulties  of  the  navigation,  and  that  a  good 
run  of  eight-and-forty  hours  would  carry  her  quite  beyond 
the  crowded  ice.  This  sight  awakened  some  regrets  in  the 
two  masters,  that  they  were  not  then  in  a  condition  to 
depart. 

"  I  am  almost  sorry  that  we  have  made  a  holiday  of  the 
Sunday,"  said  Daggett,  seating  himself  on  a  point  of  rock, 
to  get  a  little  rest  after  so  fatiguing  an  ascent.  "  Every 
minute  of  time  is  precious  to  men  in  our  situation." 

"  Every  minute  of  time  is  precious  to  all  men,  Captain 
Daggett,  in  another  and  a  still  more  important  sense,  if 
they  did  but  know  it,"  put  in  Stimson,  with  a  zealous  free 
dom,  and  a  Christian's  earnestness. 

"  I  understand  you,  Stephen,  and  will  not  gainsay  it. 
But  a  sealin'  v'y'ge  is  no  place,  after  all,  for  a  man  to  give 
himself  up  to  Sabbaths  and  religion." 

"All  places  are  good,  sir,  and  all  hours  Sabbaths,  when 
the  heart  is  in  the  true  sta.e.  God  is  on  this  naked  rock, 
as  he  is  on  the  Vineyard ;  and  a  thought,  or  a  syllable,  in 


238  THE     SEA     LIONS. 

his  praise,  on  this  mountain,  are  as  pleasant  to  him  as 
them  that  arise  from  churches  and  priests." 

"I  believe  it  is,  at  least,  a  mistake  in  policy  to  give  the 
men  no  day  of  rest,"  said  Roswell,  quietly.  "Though  not 
prepared  to  carry  matters  as  far  as  my  friend  Stephen  here, 
I  agree  with  him  entirely  in  that." 

"And  not  in  believing,  sir,  that  the  Spirit  of  God  is  on 
this  island?'* 

"  In  that  too,  certainly.  Neither  Captain  Daggett  nor 
myself  will  be  disposed  to  dispute  either  of  these  two  pro 
positions,  I  think,  when  we  come  to  reflect  on  them.  A 
day  of  rest  would  seem  to  be  appointed  by  nature ;  and  I 
make  no  doubt  we  have  filled  up  all  the  sooner  for  having 
observed  one.  Seamen  have  so  many  calls  on  their  time 
which  cannot  be  neglected,  that  it  is  unwise  in  them  to 
increase  the  number  unnecessarily." 

"  This  is  not  the  spirit,  Captain  Gar'ner,  I  'm  sorry  to 
say,  in  which  we  should  keep  our  day  of  rest,  though  it  is 
well  that  we  keep  it  at  all.  I  'm  no  stickler  for  houses  and 
congregations,  though  they  are  good  enough  in  their  times 
and  seasons ;  for  every  man  has  a  tabernacle  in  his  own 
heart,  if  he's  disposed  to  worship." 

"And  if  any  place  on  earth  can  particularly  incline  one 
to  worship  God,  surely  it  must  be  some  such  spot  as  this !" 
exclaimed  Roswell,  with  a  degree  of  fervour  it  was  not 
usual  for  him  to  exhibit.  "  Never  in  my  life  have  my  eyes 
seen  a  sight  as  remarkable  and  as  glorious  as  this !" 

Well  might  our  young  mariner  thus  exclaim.  The  day 
was  fine  for  the  region,  but  marked  by  the  caprice  and 
changeful  light  of  high  latitudes.  There  was  mist  in  places, 
and  flurries  of  snow  were  to  be  seen  to  the  southward,  while 
the  ocean  to  the  northward  of  the  group  was  glittering 
under  the  brightness  of  an  unclouded  sun.  It  was  the 
mixed  character  of  this  scene  that  rendered  it  so  peculiar, 
while  its  grandeur,  sublimity,  and  even  beauty,  were  found 
in  its  vastness,  its  noble  though  wild  accessories,  its  frozen 
and  floating  mountains,  glowing  in  prismatic  light,  and  the 
play  of  summer  on  the  features  of  an  antarctic  view. 

"  'T  is  a  remarkable  spot,  as  no  one  can  deny,"  answered 
Uagget ;  "  but  I  like  its  abundance  of  seal  the  most  of  aL. 
I  cannot  say  I  have  much  taste  for  sights,  unless  they  bring 


THE     SEA     LIONS.  239 

the  promise  of  good  profit  with  them.  We  Vineyarders 
live  in  a  small  way,  and  are  not  rich  enough  to  take  delight 
in  landscapes." 

"  Serve  God,  and  reverence  his  holy  name,"  said  Stim- 
son,  earnestly,  "  and  all  places  will  be  good  to  look  upon. 
I  have  been  on  the  Vineyard  in  my  time,  and  have  never 
found  any  difference  as  to  the  spot,  so  long  as  the  heart  is 
right." 

"A  poor  man  must  work,"  answered  Daggett,  dropping 
his  eyes  from  the  more  distant  and  gorgeous  views  of  the 
drifting  ice-mountains,  to  the  rocky  shore,  that  was  still 
frequented  by  thousands  of  seals,  some  of  the  largest  of 
which  might  be  seen,  even  from  that  elevation,  waddling 
about ;  "  ay,  a  poor  man  must  w.ork,  Sundays  or  no  Sun 
days;  and  he  who  would  make  his  hay,  must  do  it  while 
the  sun  shines.  I  like  meetin'-goin'  at  the  right  place,  and 
sealin'  when  sealin'  ought  to  be  done.  This  day  is  lost,  I 
fear,  and  I  hope  we  shall  not  have  reason  to  regret  it." 

Stimson  did  not  abandon  what  he  conceived  to  be  his 
duty,  but  answered  this  cold,  worldly  spirit  in  the  best 
manner  his  uncultivated  speech  enabled  him  to  do.  But 
his  words  were  thrown  away  on  Daggett.  The  lust  of  gold 
was  strong  within  him ;  and  while  that  has  full  dominion 
over  the  heart,  it  is  vain  to  expect  that  any  purely  spiritual 
fruits  will  ripen  there.  Daggett  was  an  instance  of  what, 
we  fear,  many  thousands  resembling  him  might  be  found,  up 
and  down  the  land,  of  a  man  energetic  by  temperament, 
industrious  by  habit,  and  even  moderate  in  his  views;  but 
whose  whole  existence*  is  concentrated  in  the  accumulation 
of  property.  Born  poor,  and  in  a  state  of  society  in  which 
no  one  other  generally  recognised  mode  of  distinction  is  so 
universally  acknowledged  as  that  of  the  possession  of  mo 
ney,  it  is  not  surprising  that  a  man  of  his  native  disposition 
should  early  bend  all  his  faculties  to  this  one  great  object. 
He  was  not  a  miser,  like  Deacon  Pratt,  for  he  could  spend 
freely,  on  occasion,  and  perfectly  understood  the  necessity 
of  making  liberal  outfits  to  insure  ample  returns;  but  he 
lived  for  little  else  than  for  gain.  What  such  a  man  might 
have  become,  under  more  favourable  auspices,  and  with 
different  desires  instilled  into  his  youthful  mind,  it  is  not 
easy  to  say;  it  is  only  certain  that,  as  he  was,  the  steel-trap 
21 


240  THE     SEA     LIONS. 

is  not  quicker  to  spring  at  the  touch,  than  he  was  to  arouse 
all  his  manifold  energies  at  the  hopes  or  promise  of  profit. 
As  his  whole  life  had  been  passed  in  one  calling,  it  was  but 
natural  that  his  thoughts  should  most  easily  revert  to  the 
returns  that  calling  had  so  often  given.  Ha  never  dreamed 
of  speculations,  knew  nothing  of  stocks,  had  no  concern 
with  manufactures  in  cotton  or  wool,  nor  had  any  other 
notion  of  wealth  than  the  possession  of  a  good  farm  on  the 
Vineyard,  a  reasonable  amount  of  money  "  at  use,"  certain 
interests  in  coasters,  whalers,  and  sealers,  arid  a  sufficiency 
of  household  effects,  and  this  in  a  very  modest  way,  to 
make  himself  and  family  comfortable.  Notwithstanding 
this  seeming  moderation,  Daggett  was  an  intensely  covet 
ous  man ;  but  his  wishes  were  limited  by  his  habits. 

While  one  of  the  masters  of  the  sealing  crafts  was  draw 
ing  these  pictures,  in  his  imagination,  of  wealth  after  his 
manner,  very  different  were  the  thoughts  of  the  other. 
Roswell's  fancy  carried  him  far  across  that  blue  and  spar 
kling  ocean,  northward,  to  Oyster  Pond,  and  Deacon  Pratt's 
homestead,  and  to  Mary.  He  saw  the  last  in  her  single- 
nearted  simplicity,  her  maiden  modesty,  her  youthful  beauty, 
— nay,  even  in  her  unyielding  piety;  for,  singular  as  it  may 
neem,  Gardiner  valued  his  mistress  so  much  the  more  for 
that  very  faith  to  which,  in  his  own  person,  he  laid  no  claim. 
Irreligious  he  was  not,  himself,  though  skeptical  on  the  one 
great  tenet  of  Christianity.  But,  in  Mary,  it  struck  him  it 
was  right  that  she  should  believe  that  which  she  had  been 
so  sedulously  taught;  for  he  did  not.at  all  fancy  those  in 
quiring  minds,  in  the  other  sex,  that  lead  their  possessors 
in  quest  of  novelties  and  paradoxes.  In  this  humour,  then, 
the  reader  will  not  be  surprised  to  hear  that  he  imagined 
the  deacon's  niece  in  her  most  pleasing  attributes,  and 
bedecked  her  with  all  those  charms  that  render  maidens 
pleasant  to  youthful  lovers.  Had  Mary  been  less  devout, 
less  fixed  in  her  belief  that  Jesus  was  the  Son  of  God; 
strange  as  it  may  seem,  the  skeptical  young  man  would 
have  loved  her  less. 

And  what  was  that  rugged,  uncultivated  seaman,  who 
stood  near  the  two  officers,  thinking  of,  all  this  time?  Did 
he,  too,  bend  his  thoughts  on  love,  and  profit,  and  the  plea 
sures  of  this  world  ?  Of  love,  most  truly,  was  his  heart  full 


THE    SEA    LIONS.  241 

to  overflowing ;  but  it  was  the  love  of  God,  with  that  affec 
tion  for  all  his  creatures,  that  benevolence  and  faith,  which 
glow  as  warmly  in  the  hearts  of  the  humblest  and  least  edu 
cated,  as  in  those  of  the  great  and  learned.  His  mind  was 
turned  towards  his  Creator,  and  it  converted  the  extraordi 
nary  view  that  lay  before  his  sight  into  a  vast,  magnificent, 
gorgeous,  though  wild  temple,  for  his  worship  and  honour. 
It  might  be  well  for  all  of  us  occasionally  to  pause  in  our 
eager  pursuit  of  worldly  objects,  and  look  around  on  the 
world  itself,  considering  it  as  but  a  particle  in  the  illimi 
table  fields  of  creation, — one  among  the  many  thousands 
of  other  known  worlds,  that  have  been  set  in  their  places 
in  honour  of  the  hand  that  made  them.  These  brief  but 
vivid  glances  at  the  immensity  of  the  moral  space  which 
separates  man  from  his  Deity,  have  very  healthful  effects  in 
inculcating  that  humility  which  is  the  stepping-stone  of 
faith  and  love. 

After  passing  an  hour  on  the  bald  cap  of  the  mountain, 
sometimes  conversing,  at  others  ruminating  on  the  scene, 
a  change  in  the  weather  induced  our  party  to  move.  There 
had  been  flurries  of  snow  visible  all  the  morning,  but  it 
was  in  the  distance,  and  among  the  glittering  bergs.  Once 
the  volcano  had  thus  been  shut  in  from  view ;  but  now  a 
driving  cloud  passed  over  the  mountain  itself,  which  was 
quickly  as  white  as  the  pure  element  could  make  it.  So 
heavy  was  the  fall  of  snow,  that  it  was  soon  impossible  to 
see  a  dozen  yards,  and  of  course  the  whole  of  the  plain 
of  the  island  was  concealed.  At  this  most  inauspicious 
moment,  our  adventurers  undertook  their  descent. 

It  is  always  much  less  dangerous  to  mount  an  acclivity 
than  to  go  down  it.  The  upward  progress  is  easily  enough 
arrested,  while  that  in  the  other  direction  is  frequently  too 
lapid  to  be  under  perfect  command.  Roswell  felt  the  truth 
of  this,  and  would  have  proposed  a  delay  until  the  atmo 
sphere  became  clear  again,  but  it  struck  him  that  this  was 
not  likely  to  occur  very  soon.  He  followed  Daggett,  there 
fore,  though  reluctantly,  and  with  due  caution.  Stimson 
brought  up  the  rear. 

For  the  first  ten  minutes  our  adventurers  got  along  with 
out  any  great  difficulty.  They  found  the  precise  point  at 
which  they  had  reached  the  summit  if  the  mountain,  and 


242  THE     SEA    LIONS. 

began  to  descend.  It  was  soon  apparent  that  great  caution 
must  be  used,  the  snow  rendering  the  footing  slippery. 
Daiigett,  however,  was  a  bold  and  hot-blooded  man  when 
in  motion,  and  he  preceded  the  party  some  little  distance, 
calling  out  to  those  behind  him  to  come  on  without  fear. 
This  the  last  did,  though  it  was  with  a  good  deal  more 
caution  than  was  observed  by  their  leader.  At  length,  all 
three  reached  a  spot  where  it  seemed  they  could  not  over 
come  the  difficulties.  Beneath  them  was  the  smooth  face 
of  a  rock  already  covered  with  snow,  while  they  could  not 
see  far  enough  in  advance  to  ascertain  in  what  this  inclined 
plane  terminated.  Daggett,  however,  insisted  that  he  knew 
the  spot ;  that  they  had  passed  up  it.  There  was  a  broad 
shelf  a  short  distance  below  them;  and  once  on  that  shelf, 
it  would  be  necessary  to  make  a  considerable  circuit  in 
order  to  reach  a  certain  ravine,  down  which  the  path  would 
be  reasonably  easy.  All  remembered  the  shelf  and  the 
ravine;  the  question  was  merely  whether  the  first  lay  be 
neath  them,  and  as  near  as  Daggett  supposed.  A  mistaken 
confidence  beset  the  last,  and  he  carried  this  feeling  so  far 
as  to  decline  taking  an  end  of  a  line  which  Roswell  threw 
to  him,  but  seated  himself  on  the  snow  and  slid  downward, 
passing  almost  immediately  out  of  sight. 

"What  has  become  of  him?"  demanded  Roswell,  en 
deavouring  to  pierce  the  air  by  straining  his  eye-balls.  "  He 
is  not  to  be  seen !" 

"  Hold  on  to  the  line,  sir,  and  give  me  the  other  end  of 
it ;  I  will  go  and  see,"  answered  Stimson. 

It  being  obviously  the  most  hazardous  to  remain  to  the 
last,  and  descend  without  the  support  of  one  above  him, 
Roswell  acquiesced  in  this  proposal,  lowering  the  boat- 
steerer  down  the  rock,  until  he  too  was  hid  from  his  sight. 
But,  though  out  of  sight  in  that  dense  snow-storm,  Stimson 
was  not  so  distant  as  to  be  beyond  the  reach  of  the  voice. 

u  Go  more  to  the  right,  sir,"  called  out  the  seaman,  "  and 
steady  me  with  the  line  along  with  you." 

This  was  done,  the  walking  being  sufficiently  secure  at 
the  elevation  where  Roswell  was.  Presently,  Stimson  shook 
the  line,  and  called  out  again. 

"  That  will  do,  Captain  Gar'ner,"  he  said.  "  I  am  on 
the  shelf  note,  and  have  pretty  good  footing.  Lay  the  line 


THE    SEA    LIONS.  243 

down  on  the  snow,  sir,  and  slide  as  slowly  as  you  can; 
mind  and  keep  close  at  its  side.  1 711  stand  by  to  fetch 
you  up."  ^  , 

Gardiner  understood  all  this  perfectly,  and  did  as  he  was 
desired  to  do.  By  keeping  near  the  line  he  reached  the 
shelf  precisely  at  the  spot  where  Stimson  was  ready  to  meet 
him  ;  the  latter  arresting  his  downward  movement  by  throw 
ing  the  weight  of  his  own  body  forward  to  meet  his  officer. 
By  such  a  precaution  Roswell  was  stopped  in  time,  else 
would  he  have  gone  over  the  shelf,  and  down  a  declivity 
that  was  so  nearly  perpendicular  as  to  offer  no  means  of 
arresting  the  movement. 

"And  what  has  become  of  Captain  Daggett?"  demanded 
Gardiner,  as  soon  as  on  his  feet  again. 

"  I  fear  he  has  shot  off  the  rock,  sir,"  was  the  answer 
"At  the  place  where  I  reached  this  shelf,  it  was  so  narrow 
I  could  with  great  difficulty  walk— could  not,  indeed,  had 
not  the  line  been  there  to  steady  me ;  and,  judging  from 
the  marks  in  the  snow,  the  poor  man  has  gone  down  help 
less  \" 

This  was  appalling  intelligence  to  receive  at  such  a 
time,  and  in  such  a  place  !  But,  Roswell  was  not  unmanned 
by  it;  on  the  contrary,  he  acted  coolly  and  with  great 
judgment.  Making  a  coil  of  the  ratlin-stuff,  he  threw  the 
line  down  until  certain  it  reached  bottom,  at  the  distance 
of  about  six  fathoms.  Then  he  caused  Stimson  to  brace 
himself  firmly,  holding  on  to  the  line,  aided  by  a  turn 
round  a  rise  in  the  rock,  and  he  boldly  lowered  himself 
down  the  precipice,  reaching  its  base  at  about  the  distance 
he  had  calculated  so  to  do. 

It  still  snowed  violently,  the  flakes  being  large,  and  eddy 
ing  round  the  angles  of  the  rocks,  in  flurries  so  violent  as, 
at  moments,  to  confound  all  the  senses  of  the  young  man. 
He  was  resolute,  however,  and  bent  on  an  object  of 
humanity,  as  well  as  of  good  fellowship.  Living  or  dead, 
Daggett  must  be  somewhere  on  his  present  level ;  and  he 
began  to  grope  his  way  among  the  fragments  of  rock,  eager 
and  solicitous.  The  roaring  of  the  wind  almost  prevented 
his  hearing  other  sounds ;  though  once  or  twice  he  heard, 
or  fancied  that  he  heard,  the  shouts  of  Stimson  from  above. 
Suddenly,  the  wind  ceased,  the  snow  lessened  in  quantity, 
21* 


244  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

soon  clearing  away  altogether ;  and  the  rays  of  the  sun — 
and  this  in  the  dog-days  of  that  region,  be  it  remembered 
— fell  bright  and  genial  on  the  glittering  scene.  At  the 
next  instant,  the  eyes  of  Roswell  fell  on  the  object  of  hia 
search. 

Daggett  had  been  carried  over  the  narrow  shelf  on  which 
Stimson  landed,  in  consequence  of  his  having  no  support, 
or  any  means  of  arresting  his  momentum.  He  did  thrust 
forward  his  lance,  or  leaping-stafF;  but  its  point  met  no 
thing  but  air.  The  fall,  however,  was  by  no  means  perpen 
dicular,  several  projections  of  the  rocks  helping  to  lessen 
it;  though  it  is  probable  that  the  life  of  the  unfortunate 
sealer  was  saved  altogether  by  means  of  the  lance.  This 
was  beneath  him  as  he  made  his  final  descent,  and  he  slid 
along  it  the  whole  length,  canting  him  into  a  spot  where 
was  the  only  piece  of  stinted  vegetation  that  was  to  be  seen 
for  a  considerable  distance.  In  consequence  of  coming 
down  on  a  tolerably  thick  bunch  of  furze,  the  fall  was 
essentially  broken. 

When  Roswell  reached  his  unfortunate  companion,  the 
latter  was  perfectly  sensible,  and  quite  cool. 

"God  be  thanked  that  you  have  found  me,  Gar'ner,"  he 
said ;  "  at  one  time  I  had  given  it  up." 

"  Thank  God,  also,  that  you  are  living,  my  friend,"  an 
swered  the  other.  "  I  expected  only  to  find  your  body ; 
but  you  do  not  seem  to  be  much  hurt." 

"  More  than  appears,  Gar'ner ;  more  than  appears.  My 
left  leg  is  broken,  certainly ;  and  one  of  my  shoulders  pains 
me  a  good  deal,  though  it  is  neither  out  of  joint  or  broken. 
This  is  a  sad  business  for  a  sealing  v'y'ge !" 

"  Give  yourself  no  concern  about  your  craft,  Daggett — 
I  will  look  to  her,  and  to  your  voyage." 

"Will  you  stand  by  the  schooner,  Gar'ner?  —  Promise 
me  that,  and  my  mind  will  be  at  peace." 

"  I  do  promise.  The  two  vessels  shall  stick  together, 
at  all  events,  until  we  are  clear  of  the  ice." 

"Ay,  but  that  won't  do.  My  Sea  Lion  must  be  filled  up 
as  well  as  your  own.  Promise  me  that." 

"  It  shall  be  done,  God  willing.  But  here  comes  Stim- 
son;  the  first  thing  will  be  to  get  you  out  of  this  spot." 

Daggett  was  obviously  relieved  by  Roswell's  pledges ; 


THE     SEA     LIONS.  245 

for,  amid  the  anguish  and  apprehensions  of  his  unexpected 
state,  his  thoughts  had  most  keenly  adverted  to  his  vessel 
and  her  fortunes.  Now  that  his  mind  was  somewhat  re 
lieved  on  this  score,  the  pains  of  his  body  became  more 
sensibly  felt.  The  situation  of  our  party  was  sufficiently 
embarrnssing.  The  leg  of  Daggett  was  certainly  broken, 
a  little  distance  above  his  ancle;  and  various  bruises  in 
other  places,  gave  notice  of  the  existence  of  other  injuries. 
To  do  anything  with  the  poor  man,  lying  where  he  was, 
was  out  of  the  question,  however;  and  the  first  thing  was 
to  remove  the  sufferer  to  a  more  eligible  position.  Fortu 
nately  it  was  no  great  distance  to  the  foot  of  the  mountain, 
and  a  low  level  piece  of  rock  was  accessible  by  means  of 
care  and  steady  feet.  Daggett  was  raised  between  Roswell 
and  Stimson  in  a  sitting  attitude,  and  supporting  himself 
by  putting  an  arm  around  the  neck  of  each.  The  legs 
hung  down,  the  broken  as  well  as  the  sound  limb.  To  this 
accidental  circumstance  the  sufferer  was  indebted  to  apiece 
of  incidental  surgery  that  proved  of  infinite  service  to  him. 
While  dangling  in  this  manner  the  bone  got  into  its  place, 
and  Daggett  instantly  became  aware  of  that  important  fact, 
which  was  immediately  communicated  to  Roswell.  Of 
course  the  future  mode  of  proceeding  was  regulated  by  this 
agreeable  piece  of  information, 

Sailors  are  often  required  to  act  as  physicians,  surgeons 
and  priests.  It  is  not  often  that  they  excel  in  either  capa 
city  ;  but,  in  consequence  of  the  many  things  they  are  called 
to  turn  their  hands  to,  it  does  generally  happen  that  they 
get  to  possess  a  certain  amount  of  address  that  renders 
them  far  more  dexterous,  in  nearly  everything  they  under 
take,  than  the  generality  of  those  who  are  equally  strangers 
to  the  particular  act  that  is  thus  to  be  exercised.  Roswell 
had  set  one  or  two  limbs  already,  and  had  a  tolerable  no 
tion  of  the  manner  of  treating  the  case.  Daggett  was  now 
seated  on  a  rock  at  the  base  of  the  mountain,  with  his  legs 
still  hanging  down,  arid  his  back  supported  by  another  rock. 
No  sooner  was  he  thus  placed,  than  Stimson  was  despatch 
ed,  post-haste,  for  assistance.  His  instructions  were  full, 
and  the  honest  fellow  set  off  at  a  rate  that  promised  as  early 
relief  as  the  circumstances  would  at  all  allow. 

As  for  our  hero,  he  set  about  his  most  important  office 


246  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

the  instant  Stimson  left  him.  Daggett  aided  with  his  coun 
sel,  and  a  little  by  his  personal  exertions ;  for  a  seaman  does 
not  lie  down  passively,  when  anything  can  be  done,  even 
in  his  own  case. 

Baring  the  limb,  Roswell  soon  satisfied  himself  that  the 
bone  had  worked  itself  into  place.  Bandages  were  instantly 
applied  to  keep  it  there  while  splints  were  making.  It  was, 
perhaps,  a  little  characteristic  that  Daggett  took  out  his 
knife,  and  aided  in  shaving  down  these  splints  to  the  ne 
cessary  form  and  thickness.  They  were  made  out  of  the 
staff  of  the  broken  lance,  and  were  soon  completed.  Ros 
well  manifested  a  good  deal  of  dexterity  and  judgment  in 
applying  the  splints.  The  handkerchiefs  were  used  to  re 
lieve  the  pressure  in  places,  and  rope-yarns  from  the  ratlin- 
stuff  furnished  the  means  of  securing  everything  in  its 
place.  In  half  an  hour,  Roswell  had  his  job  completed, 
and  that  before  there  was  much  swelling  to  interfere  with 
him.  As  soon  as  the  broken  limb  was  thus  attended  to,  it 
was  carefully  raised,  arid  laid  upon  the  rock  along  with  its 
fellow,  a  horizontal  position  being  deemed  better  than  one 
that  was  perpendicular. 

Not  less  than  four  painful  hours  now  passed,  ere  the 
gang  of  hands  from  the  vessels  reached  the  base  of  the 
mountain.  It  came  prepared,  however,  to  transport  the 
sufferer  on  a  hand-barrow  that  had  been  used  in  conveying 
the  skins  of  seal  across  the  rocks.  On  this  barrow  Daggett 
was  now  carefully  placed,  when  four  men  lifted  him  up, 
and  walked  away  with  him  for  a  few  hundred  yards.  These 
were  then  relieved  by  four  more;  and,  in  this  manner,  was 
the  whole  distance  to  the  house  passed  over.  The  patient 
was  put  in  his  bunk,  and  some  attention  was  bestowed  on 
his  bruises  and  other  injuries. 

Glad  enough  was  the  sufferer  to  find  himself  beneath  a 
roof,  and  in  a  room  that  had  its  comforts ;  or  what  were 
deemed  comforts  on  a  sealing  voyage.  As  the  men  were 
in  the  dormitory  very  little  of  the  time  except  at  night,  he 
was  enabled  to  sleep ;  and  Roswell  had  hopes,  as  he  now 
told  Stimson,  that  a  month  or  six  weeks  would  set  the  pa 
tient  on  his  feet  again. 

"  He  has  been  a  fortunate  fellow,  Stephen,  that  it  was 
no  worse,"  added  Roswell,  on  that  occasion.  "  But  for  the 


THE     SEA     LIONS.  247 

luck  which  turned  the  lance-pole  beneath  him,  every  bone 
he  has  would  have  been  broken." 

"  What  you  call  luck,  Captain  Gar'ner,  I  call  Provi 
dence,"  was  Stephen's  answer.  "  The  good  book  tells  us 
that  not  a  sparrow  shall  fall  without  the  eye  of  Divine  Pro 
vidence  being  on  it." 


CHAPTER  XYIH. 

"  Now  far  he  sweeps,  where  scarce  a  summer  smiles, 
On  Bhering's  rocks,  or  Greenland's  naked  isles ; 
Cold  on  his  midnight  watch  the  breezes  blow, 
From  wastes  that  slumber  in  eternal  snow, 
And  waft  across  the  waves'  tumultuous  roar, 
The  wolf's  long  howl  from  Oonalaska's  shore." 

CAMPBELL. 

ROSWELL  GARDINER  set  about  his  duties,  the  succeeding 
day,  with  a  shade  of  deep  reflection  on  his  brow.  A  crisis 
had,  indeed,  come  in  his  affairs,  and  it  behooved  him  to 
look  well  to  his  proceedings.  Daggett's  presence  on  the 
island  was  no  longer  of  any  moment  to  himself  or  his  owner, 
but  there  remained  the  secret  of  the  Key,  and  of  the  buried 
treasure.  Should  the  two  schooners  keep  together,  how 
was  he  to  acquit  himself  in  that  part  of  his  duty,  without 
admitting  of  a  partnership,  against  which  he  knew  that 
every  fibre  in  the  deacon's  system,  whether  physical  or 
moral,  would  revolt.  Still,  his  word  was  pledged,  and  he 
had  no  choice  but  to  remain,  and  help  fill  up  the  rival  Sea 
Lion,  and  trust  to  his  own  address  in  getting  rid  of  her 
again,  as  the  two  vessels  proceeded  north. 

The  chief  mate  of  Daggett's  craft,  though  a  good  sealer, 
was  an  impetuous  and  reckless  man,  and  had  more  than 
once  found  fault  with  the  great  precautions  used,  by  the 
orders  of  Roswell.  Macy,  as  this  officer  was  called,  was 
for  making  a  regular  onslaught  upon  the  animals,  slaying 
as  many  as  they  could  at  once,  and  then  take  up  the  busi 
ness  of  curing  and  trying-out  as  a  regular  job.  He  had 


248  THE     SEA     LIONS. 

seen  such  things  done  with  success,  and  he  believed  it  waa 
the  most  secure  mode  of  getting  along.  '  Some  of  these 
fine  mornings,'  as  he  expressed  it,  '  Captain  Gar'ner  would 
turn  out,  and  find  that  his  herd  was  off — gone  to  pasture  in 
some  other  field.'  This  was  a  view  of  the  matter  with 
which  Roswell  did  not  at  all  agree.  His  forbearing  and 
cautious  policy  had  produced  excellent  results  so  far,  and 
he  hoped  it  would  continue  so  to  do,  until  both  schooners 
were  full.  On  the  morning  when  the  men  next  went  forth, 
he  as  leader  of  both  crews,  therefore,  our  young  master 
renewed  his  admonitions,  pointing  out  to  the  new-comers, 
in  particular,  the  great  necessity  there  was  of  using  forbear 
ance,  and  not  to  alarm  the  seals  more  than  the  work  indis 
pensably  required.  The  usual  number  of  "Ay,  ay's,  sir!" 
were  given  in  reply,  and  the  gangs  went  along  the  rocks, 
seemingly  in  a  good  humour  to  obey  these  injunctions. 

Circumstances,  however,  were  by  no  means  favourable 
to  giving  Roswell  the  same  influence  over  the  Vineyard- 
men  as  he  possessed  over  his  own  crew.  He  was  a  young 
commander,  and  this  was  his  first  voyage  in  that  capacity, 
as  all  well  knew ;  then,  there  had  been  rivalry  and  compe 
tition  between  the  two  crafts,  which  was  a  feeling  not  so 
easily  removed ;  next,  Macy  felt,  and  even  intimated,  that 
he  was  the  lawful  commander  of  his  own  schooner,  in  cases 
in  which  Daggett  was  disabled,  and  that  the  latter  had  no 
power  to  transfer  him  and  his  people  to  the  authority  of  any 
other  individual.  All  these  points  were  discussed  that  day, 
with  some  freedom,  particularly  among  the  Vineyard-men, 
and  especially  the  last. 

Wisely  has  it  been  said  that  "  the  king's  name  is  a  tower 
of  strength."  They  who  have  the  law  on  their  side,  carry 
with  them  a  weight  of  authority  that  it  is  not  easy  to  shake 
by  means  of  pure  reasoning  on  right  or  wrong.  Men  are 
much  inclined  to  defer  to  those  who  are  thus  armed,  legal 
control  being  ordinarily  quite  as  effective  in  achieving  a 
victory,  as  having  one's  "quarrel  just."  In  a  certain  sense, 
authority  indeed  becomes  justice,  and  we  look  to  its  proper 
exercise  as  one  of  the  surest  means  of  asserting  what  "  is 
right  between  man  and  man." 

"  The  commodore  says  that  the  critturs  are  to  be  treated 
delicately,"  said  Macy,  laughing,  as  he  lanced  his  first  seal 


THE    SEA    LIONS.  249 

that  morning,  a  young  one  of  the  fur  species ;  "  so  take  up 
the  pet,  lads,  and  lay  it  in  its  cradle,  while  I  go  look  for  its 
mamma." 

A  shout  of  merriment  succeeded  this  sally,  and  the  men 
were  only  so  much  the  more  disposed  to  be  rebellious  and 
turbulent,  in  consequence  of  hearing  so  much  freedom  of 
remark  in  their  officer. 

"The  child's  in  its  cradle,  Mr.  Macy,"  returned  Jen 
kins,  who  was  a  wag  as  well  as  the  mate.  "  In  my  judg 
ment,  the  best  mode  of  rocking  it  to  sleep  will  be  by  knock 
ing  over  all  these  grim  chaps  that  are  so  plenty  in  our 
neighbourhood." 

"  Let  'em  have  it!"  cried  Macy,  making  an  onset  on  an 
elephant,  as  he  issued  the  order.  In  an  instant,  the  rocks 
at  that  point  of  the  island  were  a  scene  of  excitement  and 
confusion.  Hazard,  who  was  near  at  hand,  succeeded  in 
restraining  his  own  people,  but  it  really  seemed  as  if  the 
Vineyard-men  were  mad.  A  great  many  seals  were  killed, 
it  is  true ;  but  twenty  were  frightened  to  take  refuge  in  the 
ocean,  where  one  was  slain.  All  animals  have  their  alarm 
cries,  or,  if  not  absolutely  cries,  signals  that  are  understood 
by  themselves.  Occasionally,  one  sees  a  herd,  or  a  flock, 
take  to  its  heels,  or  to  its  wings,  without  any  apparent  cause, 
but  in  obedience  to  some  warning  that  is  familiar  to  their 
instincts.  Thus  must  it  have  been  with  the  seals;  for  the 
rocks  were  soon  deserted,  even  at  the  distance  of  a  league 
from  the  scene  of  slaughter,  leaving  Hazard  and  his  gang 
literally  with  nothing  to  do,  unless,  indeed,  they  returned 
to  complete  some  stowage  that  remained  to  be  done,  on 
board  their  own  craft. 

"  I  suppose  you  know,  Mr.  Macy,  all  this  is  contrary  to 
orders,"  said  Hazard,  as  he  was  leading  his  own  gang  back 
towards  the  cove.  "  You  see  I  am  obliged  to  go  in  and 
report." 

"Report  and  welcome!"  was  the  answer.  "I  have  no 
commander  but  Captain  Daggett ; — and,  by  the  way,  if  you 
Bee  him,  Hazard,  just  tell  hirn  we  have  made  a  glorious 
morning's  work  of  it." 

"Ay,  ay;  you  will  have  your  hands  full  enough  to-day, 
Macy;  but  how  will  ii  be  to-morrow?" 

"  Why,  just  as  it  has  been  to-day.    The  devils  must  come 


250  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

up  to  blow,  and  we're  sartain  of 'em,  somewhere  along  the 
shore.  This  day's  work  is  worth  any  two  that  I  've  seen, 
since  I  came  upon  the  island." 

"  Very  true ;  but  what  will  to-morrow's  work  be  worth  ? 
I  will  tell  Captain  Daggett  what  you  wish  me  to  say,  how 
ever,  and  we  will  hear  his  opinion  on  the  subject.  In  my 
judgment,  he  means  to  command  his  craft  till  she  gets  back 
to  the  Hole,  legs  or  no  legs." 

Hazard  went  his  way,  shaking  his  head  ominously  as  he 
proceeded.  Nor  was  he  much  mistaken  in  what  he  ex 
pected  from  Daggett's  anger.  That  experienced  sealer 
sent  for  his  mate,  and  soon  gave  him  to  understand  that  he 
was  yet  his  commander.  Loose  and  neighbourly  as  is  usu 
ally  the  discipline  of  one  of  these  partnership  vessels,  there 
is  commonly  a  man  on  board  who  is  every  way  competent 
to  assert  the  authority  given  him  by  the  laws,  as  well  as  by 
his  contract.  Macy  was  sent  for,  rebuked,  and  menaced 
with  degradation  from  his  station,  should  he  again  presume 
to  violate  his  orders.  As  commonly  happens  in  cases  of 
this  nature,  regrets  were  expressed  by  the  offender,  and 
future  obedience  promised. 

But  the  mischief  was  done.  Sealing  was  no  longer  the 
regular,  systematic  pursuit  it  had  been  on  that  island,  but 
had  become  precarious  and  changeful.  At  times,  the  men 
met  with  good  success ;  then,  days  would  occur  in  which 
not  a  single  creature,  of  any  of  the  different  species,  would 
be  taken.  The  Vineyard  schooner  was  not  more  than  half- 
full,  and  the  season  was  fast  drawing  to  a  close.  Roswell 
was  quite  ready  to  sail,  and  he  began  to  chafe  a  little  under 
the  extra  hazards  that  were  thus  imposed  on  himself  and 
his  people. 

In  the  mean  time,  or  fully  three  weeks  after  the  occur 
rence  of  the  accident  to  Daggett,  the  injuries  received  by 
the  wounded  man  were  fast  healing.  The  bones  had  knit, 
and  the  leg  promised,  in  another  month,  to  become  tolera 
bly  sound,  if  not  as  strong  as  it  had  been  before  the  hurt. 
All  the  bruises  were  well,  and  the  captain  of  the  Vineyard 
craft  was  just  beginning  to  move  about  a  little  on  crutches; 
a  prodigious  relief  to  one  of  his  habits,  after  the  confine 
ment  to  the  house.  By  dint  of  great  care,  he  could  work 
his  way  down  on  the  shelf  that  stretcher),  like  a  terrace,  foi 


THE    SEA    LIONS.  251 

two  hundred  yards  beneath  the  dwelling.  Here  he  met 
Roswell,  on  the  morning  of  the  Sabbath,  just  three  weeks 
after  their  unfortunate  visit  to  the  mountain.  Each  took 
his  seat  on  a  low  point  of  rock,  and  they  began  to  converse 
on  their  respective  prospects,  and  on  the  condition  of  their 
vessels  and  crews.  Stephen  was  near  his  officer,  as  usual. 

"  I  believe  Stimson  was  right  in  urging  me  to  give  the 
men  their  Sabbaths,"  observed  Gardiner,  glancing  round 
at  the  different  groups,  in  which  the  men  were  washing, 
shaving,  and  otherwise  getting  rid  of  the  impurities  created 
by  another  week  of  toil.  "They  begin  anew,  after  a  little 
rest,  with  a  better  will,  and  steadier  hands." 

4<  Yes,  the  Sabbath  is  a  great  privilege,  especially  to  such 
as  are  on  shore,"  returned  Daggett.  "At  sea,  I  make  no 
great  account  of  it :  a  craft  must  jog  along,  high  days  or 
holidays."  • 

"  Depend  on  it,  the  same  account  is  kept  of  the  day, 
Captain  Daggett,  in  the  great  log-book  above,  whether  a 
man  is  on  or  off  soundings,"  put  in  Stephen,  who  was  pri 
vileged  ever  to  deliver  his  sentiments  on  such  subjects. 
"  The  Lord  is  God  on  the  sea,  as  on  the  land." 

There  was  a  pause  ;  for  the  solemn  manner  and  undoubted 
sincerity  of  the  speaker  produced  an  impression  on  his 
companions,  little  given  as  they  were  to  thinking  deeply 
on  things  of  that  nature.  Then  Roswell  renewed  the  dis 
course,  turning  it  on  a  matter  that  had  been  seriously  up 
permost  in  his  mind  for  several  days. 

c<  I  wish  to  converse  with  you,  Captain  Daggett,  about 
our  prospects  and  chances,"  he  said.  "  My  schooner  is 
full,  as  you  know.  We  could  do  no  more,  if  we  stayed 
here  another  season.  You  are  about  half-full,  with  a  greatly 
diminished  chance  of  filling  up  this  summer.  Mr.  Macy's 
attack  on  the  seals  has  put  you  back  a  month,  at  least,  and 
every  day  we  shall  find  the  animals  less  easy  to  take.  The 
equinox  is  not  very  far  off,  and  then,  you  know,  we  shall 
get  less  and  less  sun, — so  little,  as  to  be  of  no  great  use  to 
us.  We  want  day-light  to  get  through  the  ice,  and  we 
shall  have  a  long  hundred  leagues  of  it  between  us  and 
clear  water,  even  were  we  to  get  under  way  to-morrow. 
Remember  what  a  serious  thing  it  would  be,  to  get  caught 
up  here,  iu  so  high  a  latitude,  after  the  sun  has  left  us  I" 
22 


252  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

"  I  understand  you,  Gar'ner,"  answered  the  other,  quietly, 
though  his  manner  denoted  a  sort  of  compelled  resignation, 
rather  than  any  cordial  acquiescence  in  that  which  he  be 
lieved  his  brother  master  intended  to  propose.  "You're 
master  of  your  own  vessel ;  and  I  dare  say  Deacon  Pratt 
would  be  much  rejoiced  to  see  you  coming  in  between 
Shelter  Island  and  Oyster  Pond.  I'm  but  a  cripple,  or  I 
think  the  Vineyard  craft  wouldn't  be  many  days'  run  astarn !" 

Roswell  was  provoked ;  but  his  pride  was  touched  also. 
Biting  his  lip,  he  was  silent  for  a  moment,  when  he  spoke 
very  much  to  the  point,  but  generously,  and  like  a  man. 

"  I  '11  tell  you  what  it  is,  Daggett,"  said  our  hero,  "  good- 
fellowship  is  good-fellowship,  and  the  flag  is  the  flag.  It 
is  the  duty  of  all  us  Yankee  seamen  to  stand  by  the  stripes ; 
and  I  hope  I  'm  as  ready  as  another  to  do  what  I  ought  to 
do,  jn  such  a  matter ;  but  my  owner  is  ^i  close  calculator, 
and  I  am  much  inclined  to  think  that  he  will  care  less  for 
this  sort  of  feeling  than  you  and  I.  The  deacon  was  never 
in  blue  water." 

"  So  I  suppose — He  has  a  charming  daughter,  I  believe, 
Gar'ner?" 

"  You  mean  his  niece,  I  suppose,"  answered  Roswell, 
colouring.  "  The  deacon  never  had  any  child  himself,  I 
believe  —  at  least  he  has  none  living.  Mary  Pratt  is  his 
niece." 

"It's  all  the  same  —  niece  or  daughter,  she's  comely, 
and  will  be  rich,  I  hear.  Well,  I  am  poor,  and  what  is 
more,  a  cripple  /" 

Roswell  could  have  knocked  his  companion  down,  for 
he  perfectly  understood  the  character  of  the  allusion ;  but 
he  had  sufficient  self-command  to  forbear  saying  anything 
that  might  betray  how  much  he  felt. 

It  is  always  easier  to  work  upon  the  sensitiveness  of  a 
spirited  and  generous-minded  man,  than  to  influence  him 
by  force  or  apprehensions.  Roswell  had  never  liked  the 
idea  of  leaving  Daggett  behind  him,  at  that  season,  and  in 
that  latitude;  and  he  relished  it  still  less,  now  that  he  saw 
a  false  reason  might  be  attributed  to' his  conduct. 

"  You  certainly  do  not  dream  of  wintering  here,  Captain 
Daggett?"  he  said,  after  a  pause. 

"  Not  if  I  can  help  it.     But  the  schooner  can  never  go 


THE     SEA    LIONS.  253 

back  to  the  Vineyard  without  a  ful  hold.  The  very  women 
would  make  the  island  too  hot  for  us  in  such  a  case.  Do 
your  duty  by  Deacon  Pratt,  Gar'ner,  and  leave  me  here  to 
get  along  as  well  as  I  can.  I  shall  be  able  to  walk  a  little 
in  a  fortnight;  and,  in  a  month,  I  hope  to  be  well  enough 
to  get  out  among  the  people,  and  regulate  their  sealing  a 
little  myself.  Mr.  Macy  will  be  more  moderate  with  my 
eye  on  him." 

"A  month !  He  who  stays  here  another  month  may 
a. most  make  up  his  mind  to  stay  eight  more  of  them;  if, 
indeed,  he  ever  get  away  from  the  group  at  all !" 

"A  late  start  is  better  than  a  half-empty  vessel.  When 
you  get  in  to  Oyster  Pond,  Gar'ner,  I  hope  you  will  send  a 
line  across  to  the  Vineyard,  and  tell  'em  all  about  us." 

Another  long  and  brooding  pause  succeeded,  during 
which  Roswell's  mind  was  made  up. 

"  I  will  do  this  with  you,  Daggett,"  he  said,  speaking 
like  one  who  had  fully  decided  on  his  course.  "  Twenty 
days  longer  will  I  remain  here,  and  help  to  make  out  your 
cargo;  after  which  I  sail,  whether  you  get  another  skin  or 
a  thousand.  This  will  be  remaining  as  long  as  any  prudent 
man  ought  to  stay  in  so  high  a  latitude." 

"  Give  me  your  hand,  Gar'ner.  I  knew  you  had  the 
clear  stuff  in  you,  and  that  it  would  make  itself  seen  at  the 
proper  moment.  I  trust  that  Providence  will  favour  us  — 
it 's  really  a  pity  to  lose  as  fine  a  day  as  this ;  especially  as 
the  crittur's  are  coming  up  on  the  rocks  to  bask,  something 
like  old  times!" 

"  You  '11  gain  no  great  help  from  that  Providence  you 
just  spoke  of,  Captain  Daggett,  by  forgetting  to  keep 
'Holy  the  Sabbath/  said  Stimson,  earnestly.  "Try  for 
bearance  a  little,  and  find  the  good  that  will  come  of  it." 

"  He  is  right,"  said  Roswell,  "  as  I  know  from  having 
done  as  he  advises.  Well,  our  bargain  is  made.  For  twenty 
days  longer  I  stay  here,  helping  you  to  fill  up.  That  will 
bring  us  close  upon  the  equinox,  when  I  shall  get  to  the 
northward  as  fast  as  I  can.  In  that  time,  too,  I  think  you 
will  be  able  to  return  to  duty." 

This,  then,  was  the  settled  arrangement.  Roswell  felt 
that  he  conceded  more  than  he  ought  to  do ;  but  the  feel- 


254  THE     SEA     LIONS. 

ing  of  good-fellowship  was  active  within  him,  and  he  was 
strongly  averse  to  doing  anything  that  might  wear  the  ap 
pearance  of  abandoning  a  companion  in  his  difficulties. 
All  this  time  our  hero  was  fully  aware  that  he  was  be 
friending  a  competitor ;  and  he  was  not  without  his  suspi 
cions  that  Daggett  wished  to  keep  him  within  his  view 
until  the  visit  had  been  paid  to  the  Key.  Nevertheless, 
Roswell's  mind  was  made  up.  He  would  remain  the 
twenty  days,  and  do  all  he  could  in  that  time  to  help  along 
the  voyage  of  the  Vineyarders. 

The  sealing  was  now  continued  with  more  order  and 
method  than  had  been  observed  under  Macy's  control. 
The  old  caution  was  respected,  and  the  work  prospered  in 
proportion.  Each  night,  on  his  return  to  the  house,  Gar 
diner  had  a  good  report  to  make ;  and  that  peculiar  snap 
ping  of  the  eye,  that  denoted  Daggett's  interest  in  his 
calling,  was  to  be  again  traced  in  the  expression  of  the 
Vineyarder's  features;  a  certain  proof  that  he  was  fast 
falling  into  his  old  train  of  thought  and  feeling.  Daggett 
was  never  happier  than  when  listening  to  some  account 
of  the  manner  in  which  an  old  elephant  or  lion  had  been 
taken,  or  a  number  of  fur-seals  had  been  made  to  pay  their 
tribute  to  the  enterprise  and  address  of  his  people. 

As  for  Roswell,  though  he  complied  with  his  promise, 
and  carried  on  the  duty  with  industry  and  success,  his  eye 
was  constantly  turned  on  those  signs  that  denote  the  ad 
vance  of  the  seasons.  Now  he  scanned  the  ocean  to  the 
northward,  and  noted  the  diminished  number  as  well  as 
lessened  size  of  the  floating  bergs;  proofs  that  the  summer 
and  the  waves  had  been  at  work  on  their  sides.  Next,  his 
look  was  on  the  sun,  which  was  making  his  daily  course, 
lower  and  lower,  each  time  that  he  appeared,  settling 
rapidly  away  towards  the  north,  as  if  in  haste  to  quit  a 
hemisphere  that  was  so  little  congenial  to  his  character. 
The  nights,  always  cool  in  that  region,  began  to  menace 
frost;  and  the  signs  of  the  decline  of  the  year  that  come 
so  much  later  in  more  temperate  climates,  began  to  make 
themselves  apparent  here.  It  is  true,  that  of  vegetation 
there  was  so  little,  and  that  little  so  meagre  and  of  so  hardy 
a  nature,  that  in  this  respect  the  progress  of  the  seasons 
was  not  to  be  particularly  noted ;  but  in  all  others,  Roswell 


THE     SEA    LIONS.  255 

saw  with  growing  uneasiness  that  the  latest  hour  of  his 
departure  was  fast  drawing  near. 

The  sealing  went  on  the  while,  and  with  reasonable  re 
turns,  though  the  golden  days  of  the  business  had  been 
seriously  interrupted  by  Macy's  indiscretion  and  disobe 
dience.  The  men  worked  hard,  for  they  too  foresaw  the 
approach  of  the  long  night  of  the  antarctic  circle,  and  all 
the  risk  of  remaining  too  long.  As  we  have  had  frequent 
occasion  to  use  the  term  '  antarctic,'  it  may  be  well  here 
to  say  a  few  words  in  explanation.  It  is  not  our  wish  to 
be  understood  that  these  sealers  had  penetrated  literally 
within  that  belt  of  eternal  snows  and  ice,  but  approxima- 
tively.  Few  navigators,  so  far  as  our  knowledge  extends, 
have  absolutely  gone  as  far  south  as  this.  Wilkes  did  it, 
it  is  true;  and  others  among  the  late  explorers  have  been 
equally  enterprising  and  successful.  The  group  visited  by 
Gardiner  on  this  occasion  was  quite  near  to  this  imaginary 
line;  but  we  do  not  feel  at  liberty  precisely  to  give  its 
latitude  and  longitude.  To  this  hour  it  remains  a  species 
of  private  property ;  and  in  this  age  of  anti-rentism  and 
other  audacious  innovations  on  long-received  and  venerable 
rules  of  conduct,  we  do.  not  choose  to  be  parties  to  any 
inroads  on  the  rights  of  individuals  when  invaded  by  the 
cupidity  and  ruthless  power  of  numbers.  Those  who  wish 
to  imitate  Roswell  must  find  the  islands  by  bold  adventure 
as  he  reached  them ;  for  we  are  tongue-tied  on  the  subject. 
It  is  enough,  therefore,  that  we  say  the  group  is  near  the 
antarctic  circle ;  whether  a  little  north  or  a  little  south  of 
it,  is  a  matter  of  no  moment.  As  those  seas  have  a  general 
character,  we  shall  continue  to  call  them  the  antarctic 
seas ;  with  the  understanding  that,  included  in  the  term, 
are  the  nearest  waters  without  as  well  as  within  the  circle. 

Glad  enough  was  Roswell  Gardiner  when  his  twenty 
days  were  up.  March  was  now  far  advanced,  and  the  ap 
proach  of  the  long  nights  was  near.  The  Vineyard  craft 
was  not  full,  nor  was  Daggett  yet  able  to  walk  without  a 
cr-utch  ;  but  orders  were  issued  by  Gardiner,  on  the  evening 
of  the  last  day,  for  his  own  crew  to  "  knock  off  sealing," 
and  to  prepare  to  get  under  way  for  home. 

"  Your  mind  is  made  up,  Gar'ner,"  said  Daggett,  in  a 
deprecating  sort  of  way,  as  if  he  still  had  latent  hopes  of 
22* 


256  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

persuading  his  brother-master  to  remain  a  little  longer. 
"Another  week  would  almost  fill  us  up." 

"  Not  another  day,"  was  the  answer.  "  I  have  stayed  too 
long  already,  and  shall  be  off  in  the  morning.  If  you  will 
take  my  advice.  Captain  Daggett,  you  will  do  the  same 
thing.  Winter  comes  in  this  latitude  very  much  as  spring 
appears  in  our  own ;  or  with  a  hop,  skip,  and  a  jump.  I 
have  no  fancy  to  be  groping  about  among  the  ice,  after  the 
nights  get  to  be  longer  than  the  days !" 

"All  true  enough,  Gar'ner ;  all  quite  true — but  it  has 
such  a  look  to  take  a  craft  home,  and  she  not  full !" 

"You  hare  a  great  abundance  of  provisions;  stop  and 
whale  awhile  on  the  False  Banks,  as  you  go  north.  I 
would  much  rather  stick  by  you  there  a  whole  mouth,  than 
remain  here  another  day." 

"  You  make  me  narvous.  talking  of  the  group  in  this 
way !  I  'ra  sartain  that  this  bay  must  remain  clear  of  ice 
several  weeks  longer. " 

••  Perhaps  it  may  ;  it  is  more  likely  to  be  so  than  to  freeze 
up.  But  this  will  not  lengthen  the  days  and  carry  us  safe 
through  the  fields  and  bergs  that  we  know  are  drifting  about 
out  here  to  the  northward.  There's  a  hundred  leagues  of 
ocean  thereaway,  Daggett,  that  I  care  for  more  just  now, 
than  for  ail  the  seal  that  are  left  on  these  islands.  But, 
talking  is  useless ;  I  go  to-morrow :  if  you  are  wise,  you 
will  sail  in  company." 

This  settled  the  matter.  Daggett  well  knew  it  would  be 
useless  to  remain  without  the  aid  of  Roswell's  counsel,  and 
that  of  his  crew's  hands;  for  Macy  was  not  to  be  trusted 
any  more  as  the  leader  of  a  gang  of  sealers.  The  man  had 
got  to  be  provoked  and  reckless,  and  had  called  down  upon 
himself  latterly  more  thnn  one  rebuke.  It  was  necessary, 
therefore,  that  one  of  the  Sea  Lions  should  accompany  the 
other.  The  necessary  orders  were  issued  accordingly,  and 
"  hey  for  home!"  were  the  words  that  now  cheerfully  pass 
ed  from  mouth  to  mouth.  That  pleasant  idea  of"  home,'' 
in  which  is  concentrated  all  that  is  blessed  in  this  life,  the 
pale  of  the  Christian  duties  and  charities  excepted.  brings 
to  each  mind  its  particular  forms  of  happiness  and  good. 
The  weather-beaten  seaman,  the  foot-worn  soldier,  the 
weary  traveller,  the  adventurer  in  whatever  lands  interest 


THE    SEA     LIONS.  257 

or  pleasure  may  lead,  equally  feels  a  throb  at  Jiis  heart  as 
he  hears  the  welcome  sounds  of  "  hey  for  home."  Never 
were  craft  prepared  for  sea  with  greater  rapidity  than  was 
the  case  now  with  our  two  Sea  Lions.  It  is  true  that  the 
Oyster-Ponders  were  nearly  ready,  and  had  been  quite  so, 
for  a  fortnight ;  but  a  good  deal  remained  to  be  done  among 
the  Vineyarders.  The  last  set  themselves  to  their  task  with 
a  hearty  good-will,  however,  and  with  corresponding  re 
sults. 

u  We  will  leave  the  house  standing  for  them  that  come 
after  us,"  said  Roswell.  when  the  last  article  belonging  to  his 
schooner  was  taken  out  of  it.  "  The  deacon  has  crammed 
us  so  full  of  wood  that  I  shall  be  tempted  to  throw  half  of  it 
overboard,  now  we  have  so  much  cargo.  Let  all  stand, 
Hazard,  bunks,  planks  and  all ;  for  really  we  have  no  room 
for  the  materials.  Even  this  wood,"  pointing  to  a  pile  of 
several  cords  that  had  been  landed  already  to  make  room 
for  skins  and  casks  that  had  been  brought  out  in  shocks, 
"  must  go  to  the  next  comer.  Perhaps  it  may  be  one  of 
ourselves ;  for  we  sailors  never  know  what  port  will  next 
fetch  us  up." 

"  I  hope  it  will  be  old  Sacr,  sir,"  answered  Hazard,  cheer 
fully;  "  for,  though  no  great  matter  of  a  seaport,  it  is  near 
every  man's  home,  and  may  be  called  a  sort  of  door-way  to 
go  in  and  out  of  the  country  through." 

"A  side-door,  at  the  best/'  answered  Roswell.  "  With 
you,  I  trust  it  will  be  the  next  haven  that  we  enter :  though 
I  shall  take  the  schooner  at  once  in  behind  Shelter  Island, 
and  tie  her  up  to  the  deacon's  wharf." 

What  images  of  the  past  and  future  did  these  few  jocular 
words  awaken  in  the  mind  of  our  young  sealer !  He  fan 
cied  that  he  sa\v  Mary  standing  in  the  porch  of  her  uncle's 
habitation,  a  witness  of  the  approach  of  the  schooner,  look 
ing  wistfully  at  the  still  indistinct  images  of  those  who  were 
to  be  seen  on  her  decks.  Mary  had  often  done  this  in  her 
dreams;  again  and  again  had  she  beheld  the  white  sails 
of  the  Sea  Lion  driving  across  Gardiner's  Bay,  and  enter 
ing  Peconic ;  and  often  had  she  thus  gazed  in  the  weather 
worn  countenance  of  him  who  occupied  so  much  of  her 
thoughts — so  many  of  her  prayers — picturing  through  the 


258  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

mysterious  ^i mages  of  sleep  the  object  she  so  well  loved 
when  waking. 

And  where  was  Mary  Pratt  at  that  day  and  hour  when 
Roswell  was  thus  issuing  his  last  orders  at  Sealer's  Land; 
and  what  was  her  occupation,  and  what  her  thoughts  1  The 
difference  in  longitude  between  the  group  and  Montauk 
was  so  trifling  that  the  hour  might  be  almost  called  identi 
cal.  Literally  so,  it  was  not;  but  mainly  so,  it  was.  There 
were  not  the  five  degrees  in  difference  that  make  the  twenty 
minutes  in  time.  More  than  this  we  are  not  permitted  to 
say  on  this  subject;  and  this  is  quite  enough  to  give  the 
navigator  a  pretty  near  notion  of  the  position  of  the  group. 
As  a  degree  of  longitude  measures  less  than  twenty-eight 
statute  miles  at  the  polar  circles,  this  is  coming  within  a 
day's  run  of  the  spot,  so  far  as  longitude  is  concerned;  and 
nearer  than  that  we  do  not  intend  to  carry  the  over-anxious 
reader,  let  his  curiosity  be  as  lively  as  it  may. 

And  where,  then,  was  Mary  Pratt?  Safe,  well,  and  rea 
sonably  happy,  in  the  house  of  her  uncle,  where  she  had 
passed  most  of  her  time  since  infancy.  The  female  friends 
of  mariners  have  always  fruitful  sources  of  uneasiness  in 
the  pursuit  itself;  but  Mary  had  no  other  cause  for  concern 
of  this  nature  than  what  was  inseparable  from  so  long  a 
voyage,  and  the  sea  into  which  Roswell  had  gone.  She 
well  knew  that  the  time  was  arrived  when  he  was  expected 
to  be  on  his  way  home ;  and  as  hope  is  an  active  and  be 
guiling  feeling,  she  already  fancied  him  to  be  much  ad 
vanced  on  his  return.  But  a  dialogue  which  took  place 
that  very  day — nay,  that  very  hour  —  between  her  and  the 
deacon,  will  best  explain  her  views  and  opinions,  and  ex 
pectations. 

"  It 's  very  extr'or'nary,  Mary,"  commenced  the  uncle, 
"  that  Gar'ner  doesn't  write !  If  he  only  know'd  how  a 
man  feels  when  his  property  is  ten  thousand  miles  off,  I  'm 
sartain  he  would  write,  and  not  leave  me  with  so  many 
misgivings  in  the  matter." 

"  By  whom  is  he  to  write,  uncle?"  answered  the  more 
considerate  and  reasonable  niece.  "  There  are  no  post- 
offices  in  the  antarctic  seas,  nor  any  travellers  to  bring  let 
ters  by  private  hands." 


THE     SEA     LIONS.  259 

"  But  he  did  write  once ;  and  plaguy  good  news  was  it 
that  he  sent  us  in  that  letter !" 

"  He  did  write  from  Rio,  for  there  he  had  the  means. 
By  my  calculations,  Roswell  has  left  his  sealing  ground 
some  three  or  four  weeks,  and  must  now  be  as  many  thou 
sand  miles  on  his  way  home." 

<4D'ye  think  so,  gal? — d'ye  think  so?''  exclaimed  the 
deacon,  his  eyes  fairly  twinkling  with  pleasure.  "  That 
would  be  good  news ;  and  if  he  dogsn't  stop  too  long  by  the 
way,  we  might  look  for  him  home  in  less  than  ninety  days 
from  this  moment !" 

Mary  smiled  pensively,  and  a  richer  colour  stole  into  her 
cheeks,  slowly  but  distinctly. 

"  I  do  not  think,  uncle,  that  Roswell  Gardiner  will  be 
very  likely  to  stop  on  his  way  to  us  here,  on  Oyster  Pond," 
was  the  answer  she  made. 

"  I  should  be  sorry  to  think  that.  The  best  part  of  his 
v'y'ge  may  be  made  in  the  West  Ingees,  and  I  hope  he  is 
not  a  man  to  overlook  his  instructions." 

"  Will  Roswell  be  obliged  to  stop  in  the  West  Indies, 
uncle?" 

"  Sartain — if  he  obeys  his  orders ;  and  I  think  the  young 
man  will  do  that.  But  the  business  there  will  not  detain 
him  long," — Mary's  countenance  brightened  again,  at  this 
remark, — "  and,  should  you  be  right,  we  may  still  look  for 
him  in  the  next  ninety  days." 

Mary  remained  silent  for  a  short  time,  but  her  charming 
face  was  illuminated  by  an  expression  of  heartfelt  happiness, 
which,  however,  the  next  remark  of  her  uncle's  had  an  ob 
vious  tendency  to  disturb. 

"  Should  Gar'ner  come  home  successful,  Mary,"  inquired 
the  deacon,  "  successful  in  all  things — successful  in  sealing, 
and  successful  in  that  other  matter — the  West  Ingee  busi 
ness,  I  mean — but  successful  in  all,  as  I  daily  pray  he  may 
be, — I  want  to  know  if  you  would  then  have  him ;  always 
supposing  that  he  got  back  himself  unchanged?" 

"  Unchanged,  I  shall  never  be  his  wife,"  answered  Mary, 
tremulously,  but  firmly. 

The  deacon  looked  at  her  in  surprise ;  for  he  had  never 
comprehended  but  one  reason  why  the  orphan  and  penni 
less  Mary  should  refuse  so  pertinacious!)  to  become  the 


260  THE     SEA    LIONS. 

wife  of  Roswell  Gardiner;  and  that  was  his  own  want  of 
means.  Now  the  deacon  loved  Mary  more  than  he  was 
aware  of  himself,  but  he  had  never  actually  made  up  his 
mind  to  leave  her  the  heiress  of  his  estate.  The  idea  of 
parting  with  property  at  all,  was  too  painful  for  him  to  think 
of  making  a  will ;  and  without  such  an  instrument,  there 
were  others  who  would  have  come  in  for  a  part  of  the  assets, 
"  share  and  share  alike,^'  as  the  legal  men  express  it.  Of 
all  this  was  the  deacon  fully  aware  and  it  occasionally 
troubled  him :  more  of  late  than  formerly,  since  he  felt  in 
his  system  the  unerring  signs  of  decay.  Once  had  he  got 
so  far  as  to  write  on  a  page  of  foolscap,  "  In  the  name  of 
God,  Amen;"  but  the  effort  proved  too  great  for  him,  and 
he  abandoned  the  undertaking.  Still  Deacon  Pratt  loved 
his  niece,  and  was  well  inclined  to  see  her  become  the  wife 
of  "  young  Gar'ner,"  more  especially  should  the  last  return 
successful. 

"Unchanged!"  repeated  the  uncle,  slowly;  "you  sar- 
tainly  would  not  wish  to  marry  him,  Mary,  if  he  was 
changed!" 

"  I  do  not  mean  changed,  in  the  sense  you  are  thinking 
of,  uncle.  But  we  will  not  talk  of  this  now.  Why  should 
Roswell  stop  in  the  West  Indies  at  all  ?  It  is  not  usual  for 
our  vessels  to  stop  there." 

"  No,  it  is  not.  If  Gar'ner  stop  at  all,  it  will  be  on  a 
very  unusual  business,  and  one  that  may  make  all  our  for 
tunes — your'n,  as  well  as  his'n  and  mine,  Mary." 

"  I  hope  that  sealers  never  meddle  with  the  transporta 
tion  of  slaves,  uncle!"  the  girl  exclaimed,  with  a  face  filled 
with  apprehension.  "  I  would  rather  live  and  die  poor, 
than  have  anything  to  do  with  them  !" 

"  I  see  no  such  great  harm  in  the  trade,  gal ;  but  such 
is  not  Roswell's  ar'nd  in  the  West  Ingees.  It's  a  great 
secret,  the  reason  of  his  call  there ;  and  I  will  venture  to 
foretell  that,  should  he  make  it,  and  should  it  turn  out  suc 
cessful,  you  will  marry  him,  gal." 

Mary  made  no  reply.  Well  was  she  assured  that  Ros 
well  had  an  advocate  in  her  own  heart,  that  was  pleading 
for  him,  night  and  day;  but  firm  was  her  determination  not 
to  unite  herself  with  one,  however  dear  to  her,  who  set  up  his 
own  feeble  understanding  of  the  nature  of  the  mediation  be- 


THE     SEA     LIONS.  261 

tween  God  and  man,  in  opposition  to  the  plainest  language 
of  revelation,  as  well  as  to  the  prevalent  belief  of  the  church, 
since  the  ages  that  immediately  succeeded  the  Christian 
era 


CHAPTEK  XIX. 

4  Poor  child  of  danger,  nursling  of  the  storm, 
Sad  are  the  woes  that  wreck  thy  manly  form ! 
Rocks,  waves,  and  winds  the  shatter'd  bark  delay; 
Thy  heart  is  sad,  thy  home  is  far  away." 

CAMPBELL. 

IT  was  about  midday,  when  the  two  Sea  Lions  opened 
their  canvass,  at  the  same  moment,  and  prepared  to  quit 
Sealer's  Land.  All  hands  were  on  board,  every  article  was 
shipped  for  which  there  was  room,  and  nothing  remained 
that  denoted  the  former  presence  of  man  on  that  dreary 
island,  but  the  deserted  house,  aud  three  or  four  piles  of 
cord-wood,  that  had  grown  on  Shelter  Island  and  Martha's 
Vineyard,  and  which  was  now  abandoned  on  the  rocks  of 
the  antarctic  circle.  As  the  topsails  were  sheeted  home, 
and  the  heavy  fore-and-aft  mainsails  were  hoisted,  the  songs 
of  the  men  sounded  cheerful  and  animating.  '  Home'  was 
in  every  tone,  each  movement,  all  the  orders.  Daggett 
was  on  deck,  in  full  command,  though  still  careful  of  his 
limb,  while  Roswell  appeared  to  be  everywhere.  Mary 
Pratt  was  before  his  mind's  eye  all  that  morning;  nor  did 
he  even  once  think  how  pleasant  it  would  be  to  meet  her 
uncle,  with  a  "  There,  deacon,  is  your  schooner,  with  a 
good  cargo  of  elephant-oil,  well  chucked  off  with  fur-seal 
skins." 

The  Oyster  Pond  craft  was  the  first  clear  of  the  ground. 
The  breeze  was  little  felt  in  that  cove,  where  usually  it  did 
not  seem  to  blow  at  all,  but  there  was  wind  enough  to  serve 
to  cast  the  schooner,  and  she  went  slowly  out  of  the  rocky 
basin,  under  her  mainsail,  foretopsail,  and  jib.  The  wind 
was  at  south-west, — the  nor-wester  of  that  hemisphere,—- 
and  it  was  fresh  and  howling  enough,  on  the  other  side  of 


262  TH-E     SEA     LIONS. 

(he  island.  After  Roswell  had  made  a  stretch  out  into  the 
bay  of  about  a  mile,  he  laid  his  foretopsail  flat  a  jack,  hauled 
over  h;s  jib-sheet,  and  put  his  helm  hard  down,  in  waiting 
for  the  other  schooner  to  come  out  and  join  him.  In  a 
quarter  of  an  hour,  Daggett  got  within  hail. 

"  Well,"  called  out  the  last,  "you  see  I  was  right,  Gar'- 
ner ;  wind  enough  out  here,  and  more,  still  further  from 
the  land.  We  have  only  to  push  in  among  them  bergs 
while  it  is  light,  pick  out  a  clear  spot,  and  heave-to  during 
the  night.  It  will  hardly  do  for  us  to  travel  among  so  much 
ice  in  the  dark." 

"  I  wish  we  had  got  out  earlier,  that  we  might  have  made 
a  run  of  it  by  day-light,"  answered  Roswell.  "Ten  hours 
of  such  a  wind,  in  my  judgment,  would  carry  us  well 
towards  clear  water." 

"The  delay  could  not  be  helped.  I  had  so  many  traps 
ashore,  it  took  time  to  gather  them  together.  Come,  fill 
away,  and  let  us  be  moving.  Now  we  are  under  way,  I  'm 
in  as  great  haste  as  you  are  yourself." 

Roswell  complied,  and  away  the  two  schooners  went, 
keeping  quite  near  to  each  other,  having  smooth  water,  and 
still  something  of  a  moderated  gale,  in  consequence  of  the 
proximity  and  weatherly  position  of  the  island.  The  course 
was  towards  a  spot  to  leeward,  where  the  largest  opening 
appeared  in  the  ice,  and  where  it  was  hoped  a  passage  to 
the  northward  would  be  found.  The  further  the  two  ves 
sels  got  from  the  land,  the  more  they  felt  the  power  of  the 
wind,  and  the  greater  was  their  rate  of  running.  Daggett 
soon  found  that  he  could  spare  his  consort  a  good  deal  of 
canvass,  a  consequence  of  his  not  being  full,  and  he  took 
in  his  topsail,  though,  running  nearly  before  the  wind,  his 
spar  would  have  stood  even  a  more  severe  strain. 

As  the  oldest  mariner,  it  had  been  agreed  between  the 
two  masters  that  Daggett  should  lead  the  way.  This  he 
did  for  an  hour,  when  both  vessels  were  fairly  out  of  the 
great  bay,  clear  of  the  group  altogether,  and  running  off 
north-easterly,  at  a  rate  of  nearly  ten  knots  in  the  hour. 
The  sea  got  up  as  they  receded  from  the  land,  and  every 
thing  indicated  a  gale,  though  one  of  no  great  violence* 
Night  was  approaching,  and  an  Alpine-like  range  of  ice 
bergs  was  glowing,  to  the  northward,  under  the  oblique 


THE    SEA    LIONS.  203 

rays  of  the  setting  sun.  For  a  considerable  space  around 
the  vessels,  the  water  was  clear,  not  even  a  cake  of  any  sort 
being  to  be  seen  ;  and  the  question  arose  in  Daggett's  mind, 
whether  he  ought  to  stand  on,  or  to  heave-to  and  pass  the 
night  well  to  windward  of  the  bergs.  Time  was  precious, 
the  wind  was  fair,  the  heavens  clear,  and  the  moon  would 
make  its  appearance  about  nine,  and  might  be  expected  to 
remain  above  the  horizon  until  the  return  of  day.  This 
was  one  side  of  the  picture.  The  other  presented  less 
agreeable  points.  The  climate  was  so  fickle,  that  the  clear 
ness  of  the  skies  was  not  to  be  depended  on,  especially  with 
a  strong  south-west  wind — a  little  gale,  in  fact;  and  a 
change  in  this  particular  might  be  produced  at  any  moment. 
Then  it  was  certain  that  floes,  and  fragments  of  bergs, 
would  be  found  near,  if  not  absolutely  among  the  sublime 
mountain-like  piles  that  were  floating  about,  in  a  species 
of  grand  fleet,  some  twenty  miles  to  leeward.  Both  of  our 
masters,  indeed  all  on  board  of  each  schooner,  very  well 
understood  that  the  magnificent  array  of  icy  islands  which 
lay  before  them  was  owing  to  the  currents,  for  which  it  is 
not  always  easy  to  account.  The  clear  space  was  to  be 
attributed  to  the  same  cause,  though  there  was  little  doubt 
that  the  wind,  which  had  now  been  to  the  southward  fuLy 
eight-and-forty  hours,  had  contributed  to  drive  the  icy  fleet 
to  the  northward.  As  a  consequence  of  these  facts,  the 
field-ice  must  be  in  the  vicinity  of  the  bergs,  and  the  em 
barrassment  from  that  source  was  known  always  to  be  very 
great. 

It  required  a  good  deal  of  nerve  for  a  mariner  to  run  in 
among  dangers  of  the  character  just  described,  as  the  sun 
was  setting.  Nevertheless,  Daggett  did  it;  and  Roswell 
Gardiner  followed  the  movement,  at  the  distance  of  about 
a  cable's  length.  To  prevent  separation,  each  schooner 
showed  a  light  at  the  lower  yard-arm,  just  as  the  day  was 
giving  out  its  last  glimmerings.  As  yet,  however,  no  diffi 
culty  was  encountered ;  the  alpine-looking  range  being  yet 
quite  two  hours'  run  still  to  leeward.  Those  two  hours 
must  be  passed  in  darkness;  and  Daggett  shortened  sail 
in  order  not  to  reach  the  ice  before  the  moon  rose.  He 
had  endeavoured  to  profit  by  the  light  as  long  as  it  remain 
ed,  to  find  a  place  at  which  he  might  venture  to  enter 
23 


264  THE     SEA     LIONS. 

among  the  bergs,  but  had  met  with  no  great  success.  The 
opening  first  seen  now  appeared  to  be  closed,  either  by 
means  of  the  drift  or  by  means  of  the  change  in  the  posi 
tion  of  the  vessels;  and  he  no  longer  thought  of  that. 
Fortune  must  be  trusted  to,  in  some  measure ;  and  on  he 
went,  Roswell  always  closely  following. 

The  early  hours  of  that  eventful  night  were  intensely 
dark.  Nevertheless,  Daggett  stood  down  towards  the  icy 
range,  using  no  other  precautions  than  shortening  sail  and 
keeping  a  sharp  look-out.  Every  five  minutes  the  call  from 
the  quarter-deck  of  each  schooner  to  "  keep  a  bright  look 
out"  was  heard,  unless,  indeed,  Daggett  or  Roswell  was  on 
his  own  forecastle,  thus  occupied  in  person.  No  one  on 
board  of  either  vessel  thought  of  sleep.  The  watch  had 
been  called,  as  is  usual  at  sea,  and  one  half  of  the  crew 
was  at  liberty  to  go  below  and  turn  in.  What  was  more, 
those  small  fore-and-aft  rigged  craft  were  readily  enough 
handled  by  a  single  watch;  and  this  so  much  the  more 
easily,  now  that  their  top-sails  were  in.  Still,  not  a  man 
left  the  deck.  Anxiety  was  too  prevalent  for  this,  the  least 
experienced  hand  in  either  crew  being  well  aware  that  the 
next  four-and-twenty  hours  would,  in  all  human  probability, 
be  decisive  of  the  fate  of  the  voyage. 

Both  Daggett  and  Gardiner  grew  more  and  more  uneasy 
as  the  time  for  the  moon  to  rise  drew  near,  without  the  orb 
of  night  making  its  appearance.  A  few  clouds  were  driving 
athwart,  the  heavens,  though  the  stars  twinkled  as  usual, 
in  their  diminutive  but  sublime  splendour.  It  was  not  so 
dark  that  objects  could  not  be  seen  at  a  considerable  dis 
tance;  and  the  people  of  the  schooners  had  no  difficulty  in 
very  distinctly  tracing,  and  that  not  very  far  ahead,  the 
broken  outlines  of  the  chain  of  floating  mountains.  No 
alpine  pile,  in  very  fact,  could  present  a  more  regular  or 
better  defined  range,  and  in  some  respects  more  fantastic 
outlines.  When  the  bergs  first  break  away  from  their  na 
tive  moorings,  their  forms  are  ordinarily  somewhat  regular ; 
the  summits  commonly  resembling  table-land.  This  regu 
larity  of  shape,  however,  is  soon  lost  under  the  rays  of  the 
summer  sun,  the  wash  of  the  ocean,  and  most  of  all  by  the 
wear  of  the  torrents  that  gush  out  of  their  own  frozen 
bosoms.  A  distinguished  navigator  of  our  own  time  baa 


THE    SEA    LIONS.  265 

compared  the  appearance  of  these  bergs,  after  their  regu 
larity  of  shape  is  lost,  and  they  begin  to  assume  the  fan 
tastic  outlines  that  uniformly  succeed,  to  that  of  a  deserted 
town,  built  of  the  purest  alabaster,  with  its  edifices  crum 
bling  under  the  seasons,  and  its  countless  unpeopled  streets, 
avenues  and  alleys.  All  who  have  seen  the  sight  unite  in 
describing  it  as  one  of  the  most  remarkable  that  comes 
from  the  lavish  hand  of  nature. 

About  nine  o'clock  on  the  memorable  night  in  question, 
there  was  a  good  deal  of  fog  driving  over  the  ocean  to  in 
crease  the  obscurity.  This  rendered  Daggett  doubly  cau 
tious,  and  he  actually  hauled  up  close  to  the  wind,  heading 
off  well  to  the  westward,  in  order  to  avoid  running  in  among 
the  bergs,  in  greater  uncertainty  than  the  circumstances 
would  seem  to  require.  Of  course  Roswell  followed  the 
movement ;  and  when  the  moon  first  diffused  its  mild  rays 
on  the  extraordinary  scene,  the  two  schooners  were  pitch 
ing  into  a  heavy  sea,  within  less  than  a  mile  of  the  weather- 
line  of  the  range  of  bergs.  It  was  soon  apparent  that  floes 
or  field  ice  accompanied  the  floating  mountains,  and  ex 
tended  so  far  to  the  southward  of  them  as  to  be  already 
within  an  inconvenient  if  not  hazardous  proximity  to  the 
two  vessels.  These  floes,  however,  unlike  those  previously 
encountered,  were  much  broken  by  the  undulations  of  the 
waves,  and  seldom  exceeded  a  quarter  of  a  mile  in  diame 
ter;  while  thousands  of  them  were  no  larger  than  the  ordi 
nary  drift  ice  of  our  own  principal  rivers  in  the  time  of  a 
freshet.  Their  vicinity  to  the  track  of  the  schooners,  in 
deed,  was  first  ascertained  by  the  noise  they  produced  in 
grinding  against  each  other,  which  soon  made  itself  audible 
even  above  the  roaring  of  the  gale. 

Both  of  our  masters  now  began  to  be  exceedingly  un 
comfortable.  It  was  soon  quite  apparent  that  Daggett  had 
been  too  bold,  and  had  led  down  towards  the  ice  without 
sufficient  caution  and  foresight.  As  the  moon  rose,  higher 
and  higher,  the  difficulties  and  dangers  to  leeward  became 
at  each  minute  more  and  more  apparent.  Nothing  could 
have  been  more  magnificent  than  the  scene  which  lay  be 
fore  the  eyes  of  the  mariners,  or  would  have  produced  a 
deeper  foeling  of  delight,  had  it  not  been  for  the  lively 
consciousness  of  the  risk  the  two  schooners  and  all  who 


266  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

were  in  them  unavoidably  ran,  by  being  so  near  and  to 
windward  of  such  an  icy  coast,  if  one  may  use  the  expres 
sion  as  relates  to  floating  bodies.  By  that  light  it  was  very 
easy  to  imagine  Wilkes'  picture  of  a  ruined  town  of  ala 
baster.  There  were  arches  of  all  sizes  and  orders:  pinna 
cles  without  number ;  towers,  and  even  statues  and  columns. 
To  these  were  to  be  added  long  lines  of  perpendicular  walls, 
that  it  was  easy  enough  to  liken  to  fortresses,  dungeons  and 
temples.  In  a  word,  even  the  Alps,  with  all  their  pecu 
liar  grandeur,  and  certainly  on  a  scale  so  vastly  more  en 
larged,  possess  no  one  aspect  that  is  so  remarkable  for  its 
resemblance  to  the  labours  of  man,  composed  of  a  material 
of  the  most  beautiful  transparency,  and  considered  as  the 
results  of  human  ingenuity,  on  a  scale  so  gigantic.  The 
glaciers  have  often  been  likened,  and  not  unjustly,  to  a 
frozen  sea ;  but  here  were  congealed  mountains  seemingly 
hewed  into  all  the  forms  of  art,  not  by  the  chisel  it  is  true, 
but  by  the  action  of  the  unerring  laws  which  produced 
them. 

Perhaps  Roswell  Gardiner  was  the  only  individual  in 
those  two  vessels  that  night  who  was  fully  alive  to  all  the 
extraordinary  magnificence  of  its  unusual  pictures.  Ste 
phen  may,  in  some  degree,  have  been  an  exception  to  the 
rule ;  though  he  saw  the  hand  of  God  in  nearly  all  things. 
"  It 's  wonderful  to  look  at,  Captain  Gar'ner,  isn't  it?"  said 
this  worthy  seaman,  about  the  time  the  light  of  the  moon 
began  to  tell  on  the  view;  "  wonderful,  truly,  did  we  not 
know  who  made  it  all !"  These  few  and  simple  words  had 
a  cheering  influence  on  Roswell,  and  served  to  increase 
his  confidence  in  eventual  success.  God  did  produce  all 
things,  either  directly  or  indirectly ;  this  even  his  sceptical 
notions  could  allow;  and  that  which  came  from  divine 
wisdom  must  be  intended  for  good.  He  would  take  courage, 
and  for  once  in  his  life  trust  to  Providence.  The  most  re 
solute  man  by  nature  feels  his  courage  augmented  by  such 
a  resolution. 

The  gales  of  the  antarctic  sea  are  said  to  be  short,  though 
violent.  They  seldom  last  six-and-thirty  hours,  and  for 
about  a  third  of  that  time  they  blow  with  their  greatest 
violence.  As  a  matter  of  course,  the  danger  amid  the  ice 
is  much  increased  by  a  tempest ;  though  a  good  working 


THE    SEA    LIONS.  267 

breeze,  or  small  gale  of  wind,  perhaps,  adds  to  a  vessel's 
security,  by  rendering  it  easier  to  handle  her,  and  to  avoid 
floes  and  bergs.  If  the  ice  is  sufficient  to  make  a  lee, 
smooth  water  is  sometimes  a  consequence;  though  it 
oftener  happens  that  the  turbulence  produced  in  clear  water 
is  partially  communicated  over  a  vast  surface,  causing  the 
fields  and  mountains  to  grind  against  each  other  under  the 
resistless  power  of  the  waves.  On  the  present  occasion, 
however,  the  schooners  were  still  in  open  water,  where  the 
wind  had  a  long  and  unobstructed  rake,  and  a  sea  had  got 
up  that  caused  both  of  the  little  craft  to  bury  nearly  to  their 
gunwales.  What  rendered  their  situation  still  more  unplea 
sant  was  the  fact  that  all  the  water  which  came  aboard  of 
them  now  soon  froze.  To  this,  however,  the  men  were 
accustomed,  it  frequently  happening  that  the  moisture  de 
posited  on  their  rigging  and  spars  by  the  fogs  froze  during 
the  nights  of  the  autumn.  Indeed,  it  has  been  thought  by 
some  speculators  on  the  subject,  that  the  bergs  themselves 
are  formed  in  part  by  a  similar  process,  though  snows  un 
doubtedly  are  the  principal  element  in  their  composition. 
This  it  is  which  gives  the  berg  its  stratified  appearance, 
no  geological  formation  being  more  apparent  or  regular  in 
this  particular  than  most  of  these  floating  mountains. 

About  ten,  the  moon  was  well  above  the  horizon ;  the 
fog  had  been  precipitated  in  dew  upon  the  ice,  where  it 
congealed,  and  helped  to  arrest  the  progress  of  dissolution; 
while  the  ocean  became  luminous  for  the  hour,  and  objects 
comparatively  distinct.  Then  it  was  that  the  seamen  first 
got  a  clear  insight  into  the  awkwardness  of  their  situation. 
The  bold  are  apt  to  be  reckless  in  the  dark ;  but  when 
danger  is  visible,  their  movements  become  more  wary  and 
better  calculated  than  those  of  the  timid.  When  Daggett 
got  this  first  good  look  at  the  enormous  masses  of  the  field- 
ice,  that,  stirred  by  the  unquiet  ocean,  were  grinding  each 
other,  and  raising  an  unceasing  rushing  sound  like  that  the 
surf  produces  on  a  beach,  though  far  louder,  and  with  a 
harshness  in  it  that  denoted  the  collision  of  substances 
harder  than  water,  he  almost  instinctively  ordered  every 
sheet  to  be  flattened  down,  and  the  schooner's  head  brought 
as  near  the  wind  as  her  construction  permitted.  Roswell 
observed  the  change  in  his  consort's  line  of  sailing,  slight 
23* 


268  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

as  it  was,  and  imitated  the  manoeuvre.  The  sea  was  too 
heavy  to  dream  of  tacking,  and  there  was  not  room  to  ware. 
So  close,  indeed,  were  some  of  the  cakes,  those  that  might 
be  called  the  stragglers  of  the  grand  array,  that  repeatedly 
each  vessel  brushed  along  so  near  them  as  actually  to  re 
ceive  slight  shocks  from  collisions  with  projecting  portions. 
It  was  obvious  that  the  vessels  were  setting  down  upon  the 
ice,  and  that  Daggett  did  not  haul  his  wind  a  moment  too 
soon. 

The  half-hour  that  succeeded  was  one  of  engrossing  in 
terest.  It  settled  the  point  whether  the  schooners  could  or 
could  not  eat  their  way  into  the  wind  sufficiently  to  weather 
the  danger.  Fragment  after  fragment  was  passed ;  blow 
after  blow  was  received ;  until  suddenly  the  field-ice  ap 
peared  directly  in  front.  It  was  in  vast  quantities,  extend 
ing  to  the  southward  far  as  the  eye  could  reach.  There 
remained  no  alternative  but  to  attempt  to  ware.  Without 
waiting  longer  than  to  assure  himself  of  the  facts,  Daggett 
ordered  his  helm  put  up  and  the  main  gaff  lowered.  At 
that  moment  both  the  schooners  were  under  their  jibs  and 
foresails,  each  without  its  bonnet,  and  double-reefed  main 
sails.  This  was  not  canvass  very  favourable  for  waring, 
there  being  too  much  after-sail ;  but  the  sheets  were  at 
tended  to,  and  both  vessels  were  soon  driving  dead  to  lee 
ward,  amid  the  foam  of  a  large  wave ;  the  next  instant,  ice 
was  heard  grinding  along  their  sides. 

It  was  not  possible  to  haul  up  on  the  other  tack  ere  the 
schooners  would  be  surrounded  by  the  floes ;  and  seeing  a 
comparatively  open  passage  a  short  distance  ahead,  Daggett 
stood  in  boldly,  followed  closely  by  Roswell.  In  ten  mi 
nutes  they  were  fully  a  mile  within  the  field,  rendering  all 
attempts  to  get  out  of  it  to  windward  so  hopeless  as  to  be 
almost  desperate.  The  manoeuvre  of  Daggett  was  begun 
under  circumstances  that  scarcely  admitted  of  any  alterna 
tive,  though  it  might  be  questioned  if  it  were  not  the  best 
expedient  that  offered.  Now  that  the  schooners  were  so  far 
within  the  field-ice,  the  water  was  much  less  broken,  though 
the  undulations  of  the  restless  ocean  were  still  consider 
able,  and  the  grinding  of  ice  occasioned  by  them  was  really 
terrific.  So  loud  was  the  noise  produced  by  these  constant 
and  violent  collisions,  indeed,  that  the  roaring  of  the  wind 


THE    SEA     LIONS.  269 

was  barely  audible,  and  that  only  at  intervals.  The  sound 
was  rushing,  like  that  of  an  incessant  avalanche,  attended 
by  cracking  noises  that  resembled  the  rending  of  a  glacier. 

The  schooners  now  took  in  their  foresails,  for  the  double 
purpose  of  diminishing  their  velocity  and  of  being  in  a 
better  condition  to  change  their  course,  in  order  to  avoid 
dangers  ahead.  These  changes  of  course  were  necessarily 
frequent ;  but,  by  dint  of  boldness,  perseverance  and  skill, 
Daggett  worked  his  way  into  the  comparatively  open  pas 
sage  already  mentioned.  It  was  a  sort  of  river  amid  the 
floes,  caused  doubtless  by  some  of  the  inexplicable  cur 
rents,  and  was  fully  a  quarter  of  a  mile  in  width,  straight 
as  an  air-line,  and  of  considerable  length;  though  how 
long  could  not  be  seen  by  moonlight.  It  led,  moreover, 
directly  down  towards  the  bergs,  then  distant  less  than  a 
mile.  Without  stopping  to  ascertain  more,  Daggett  stood 
on,  Roswell  keeping  close  on  his  quarter.  In  ten  minutes 
they  drew  quite  near  to  that  wild  and  magnificent  ruined 
city  of  alabaster  that  was  floating  about  in  the  antarctic 
sea! 

Notwithstanding  the  imminent  peril  that  now  most  se 
riously  menaced  the  two  schooners,  it  was  not  possible  to 
approach  that  scene  of  natural  grandeur  without  feelings 
of  awe,  that  were  allied  quite  as  much  to  admiration  as  to 
dread.  Apprehension  certainly  weighed  on  every  heart ; 
but  curiosity,  wonder,  even  delight,  were  all  mingled  in 
the  breasts  of  the  crews.  As  the  vessels  came  driving  down 
into  the  rnidst  of  the  bergs,  everything  contributed  to 
render  the  movements  imposing  in  all  senses,  appalling  in 
one.  There  lay  the  vast  maze  of  floating  mountains, 
generally  of  a  spectral  white  at  that  hour,  though  many  of 
the  masses  emitted  hues  more  pleasing,  while  some  were 
black  as  night  The  passages  between  the  bergs,  or  what 
might  be  termed  the  streets  and  lanes  of  this  mysterious- 
looking,  fantastical,  yet  sublime  city  of  the  ocean,  were 
numerous,  and  of  every  variety.  Some  were  broad,  straight 
avenues,  a  league  in  length;  others  winding  and  narrow; 
while  a  good  many  were  little  more  than  fissures,  that  might 
be  fancied  lanes. 

The  schooners  had  <*ot  run  a  league  within  the  berga 
before  they  felt  much  less  of  the  power  of  the  gale,  and  the 


270  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

heaving  and  setting  of  the  seas  were  sensibly  diminished 
What  was,  perhaps,  not  to  be  expected,  the  field-ice  had 
disappeared  entirely  within  the  passages  of  the  bergs,  and 
the  only  difficulty  in  navigating  was  to  keep  in  such  chan 
nels  as  had  outlets,  and  which  did  not  appear  to  be  closing. 
The  rate  of  sailing  of  the  two  schooners  was  now  greatly 
lessened,  the  mountains  usually  intercepting  the  windr 
though  it  was  occasionally  heard  howling  and  scuffling  in 
the  ravines,  as  if  in  a  hurry  to  escape,  and  pass  on  to  the 
more  open  seas.  The  grinding  of  the  ice,  too,  came  down 
in  the  currents  of  air,  furnishing  fearful  evidence  of  dan 
gers  that  were  not  yet  distant.  As  the  water  was  now 
sufficiently  smooth,  and  the  wind,  except  at  the  mouths  of 
particular  ravines,  was  light,  there  was  nothing  to  prevent 
the  schooners  from  approaching  each  other.  This  was 
done,  and  the  two  masters  held  a  discourse  together  on  the 
subject  of  their  present  situation. 

"  You  're  a  bold  fellow,  Daggett,  and  one  I  should  not 
like  to  follow  in  a  voyage  round  the  world,"  commenced 
Roswell.  "  Here  we  are,  in  the  midst  of  some  hundreds 
of  ice-bergs ;  a  glorious  sight  to  behold,  I  must  confess — 
but  are  we  ever  to  get  out  again  ?" 

"  It  is  much  better  to  be  here,  Gar'ner,"  returned  the 
other,  "  than  to  be  among  the  floes.  I  'm  always  afraid  of 
my  starn  and  my  rudder  when  among  the  field-ice ;  where 
as  there  is  no  danger  hereabouts  that  cannot  be  seen  before 
a  vessel  is  on  it.  Give  me  my  eyes,  and  [  feel  that  I  have 
a  chance." 

"  There  is  some  truth  in  that ;  but  I  wish  these  channels 
were  a  good  deal  wider  than  they  are.  A  man  may  feel  a 
berg  as  well  as  see  it.  Were  two  of  these  fellows  to  take 
it  into  their  heads  to  close  upon  us,  our  little  craft  would 
be  crushed  like  nuts  in  the  crackers !" 

"  We  must  keep  a  good  look-out  for  that.  Here  seems 
to  be  a  long  bit  of  open  passage  ahead  of  us,  and  it  leads 
as  near  north  as  we  can  wish  to  run.  If  we  can  only  get 
to  the  other  end  of  it,  f  shall  feel  as  if  half  our  passage 
back  to  Ameriky  was  made." 

The  citizen  of  the  United  States  calls  his  country  "Ame 
rica"  par  excellence,  never  using  the  addition  of  '  North, 
as  is  practised  by  most  European  people.  Daggett  meant 


THE    SEA     LIONS.  271 

'jhome,'  therefor*,  by  h'.s  'Ameriky,'  in  which  he  saw  no 
other  than  the  east  end  of  Long  Island,  Gardiner's  Island, 
and  Martha's  Vineyard.  Roswell  understood  him,  of 
course ;  so  no  breath  was  lost. 

"  In  my  judgment,"  returned  Gardiner,  "  we  shall  not 
get  clear  of  this  ice  for  a  thousand  miles.  Not  that  I  ex 
pect  to  be  in  a  wilderness  of  it,  as  we  are  to-night ;  but 
after  such  a  summer,  you  may  rely  on  it,  Daggett,  that  the 
ice  will  get  as  far  north  as  45°,  if  not  a  few  degrees  fur 
ther." 

"  It  is  possible :  I  have  seen  it  in  42°  myself;  and  in  40° 
to  the  nor'ard  of  the  equator.  If  it  get  as  far  as  50°,  how 
ever,  in  this  part  of  the  world,  it  will  do  pretty  well.  That 

will  be  play  to  what  we  have  just  here In  the  name  of 

Divine  Providence,  what  is  that,  Gar'ner  !" 

Not  a  voice  was  heard  in  either  vessel ;  scarcely  a  breath 
was  drawn  !  A  heavy,  groaning  sound  had  been  instantly 
succeeded  by  such  a  plunge  into  the  water,  as  might  be 
imagined  to  succeed  the  fall  of  a  fragment  from  another 
planet.  Then  all  the  bergs  near  by  began  to  rock  as  if 
agitated  by  an  earthquake.  This  part  of  the  picture  was 
both  grand  and  frightful.  Many  of  those  masses  rose  above 
the  sea  more  than  two  hundred  feet  perpendicularly,  and 
showed  wall-like  surfaces  of  half  a  league  in  length.  At 
the  point  where  the  schooners  happened  to  be  just  at  that 
moment,  the  ice-islands  were  not  so  large,  but  quite  a& 
high,  and  consequently  were  more  easily  agitated.  While 
the  whole  panorama  was  bowing  and  rocking,  pinnacles, 
arches,  walls  and  all,  seeming  about  to  totter  from  theii 
bases,  there  came  a  wave  sweeping  down  the  passage  thai 
lifted  them  high  in  the  air,  some  fifty  feet  at  least,  and  bore 
them  along  like  pieces  of  cork,  fully  a  hundred  yards. 
Other  waves  succeeded,  though  of  less  height  and  force ; 
when,  gradually,  the  water  regained  its  former  and  more 
natural  movement,  and  subsided. 

"This  has  been  an  earthquake!"  exclaimed  Daggett. 
"  That  volcano  has  been  pent  up,  and  the  gas  is  stirring 
up  the  rocks  beneath  the  sea." 

"  No,  sir,"  answered  Stimson,  from  the  forecastle  of  his 
own  schooner,  "  it  'a  not  that,  Captain  Daggett.  One  of 


272  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

them  bergs  has  turned  over,  like  a  whale  wallowing,  and  it 
has  set  all  the  others  a-rocking." 

This  was  the  true  explanation ;  one  that  did  not  occur 
to  the  less  experienced  sealers.  It  is  a  danger,  however, 
of  no  rare  occurrence  in  the  ice,  and  one  that  ever  needs 
to  be  looked  to.  The  bergs,  when  they  first  break  loose 
from  their  native  moorings,  which  is  done  by  the  agency 
of  frosts,  as  well  as  by  the  action  of  the  seasons  in  the 
fc-arm  months,  are  usually  tabular,  and  of  regular  outlines: 
but  this  shape  is  soon  lost  by  the  action  of  the  waves  on 
ice  of  very  different  degrees  of  consistency;  some  being 
composed  of  frozen  snow ;  some  of  the  moisture  precipi 
tated  from  the  atmosphere  in  the  shape  of  fogs ;  and  some 
of  pure  frozen  water.  The  first  melts  soonest ;  and  a  berg 
that  drifts  for  any  length  of  time  with  one  particular  face 
exposed  to  the  sun's  rays,  soon  loses  its  equilibrium,  and 
is  canted  with  an  inclination  to  the  horizon.  Finally,  the 
centre  of  gravity  gets  outside  of  the  base,  when  the  still 
monstrous  mass  rolls  over  in  the  ocean,  coming  literally 
bottom  upwards.  There  are  all  degrees  and  varieties  of  these 
ice-slips,  if  one  may  so  term  them,  and  they  bring  in  their 
train  the  many  different  commotions  that  such  accidents 
would  naturally  produce.  That  which  had  just  alarmed 
and  astonished  our  navigators  was  of  the  following  charac 
ter.  A  mass  of  ice  that  was  about  a  quarter  of  a  mile  in 
length,  and  of  fully  half  that  breadth,  which  floated  quite 
two  hundred  feet  above  the  surface  of  the  water,  and  twice 
that  thickness  beneath  it,  was  the  cause  of  the  disturbance. 
It  had  preserved  its  outlines  unusually  well,  and  stood  up 
right  to  the  last  moment ;  though,  owing  to  numerous  strata 
of  snow-ice,  its  base  had  melted  much  more  on  one  of  its 
sides  than  on  the  other.  When  the  precise  moment  arrived 
that  would  have  carried  a  perpendicular  line  from  the  cen 
tre  of  gravity  without  this  base,  the  monster  turned  leisurely 
in  its  lair,  producing  some  such  effect  as  would  have  been 
wrought  by  the  falling  of  a  portion  of  a  Swiss  mountain 
into  a  lake ;  a  sort  of  accident  of  which  there  have  been 
many  and  remarkable  instances. 

Stimson's  explanation,  while  it  raised  the  curtain  from 
ail  that  was  mysterious,  did  not  serve  very  much  to  quie'i 
apprehensions.  If  one  berg  had  performed  such  an  evoiu- 


THE    SEA     LIONS  273 

lion,  it  was  reasonable  to  suppose  that  ethers  might  do  the 
same  thing ;  and  the  commotion  made  by  this,  which  was 
at  a  distance,  gave  some  insight  into  what  might  be  ex 
pected  from  a  similar  change  in  another  nearer  by.  Both 
Daggett  and  Gardiner  were  of  opinion  that  the  fall  of  a 
berg  of  equal  size  within  a  cable's  length  of  the  schooners 
might  seriously  endanger  the  vessels  by  dashing  them 
against  some  wall  of  ice,  if  in  no  other  manner.  It  was 
too  late,  however,  to  retreat,  and  the  vessels  stood  on  gal 
lantly. 

The  passage  between  the  bergs  now  became  quite 
straight,  reasonably  broad,  and  was  so  situated  as  regarded 
the  gale,  as  to  receive  a  full  current  of  its  force.  It  was 
computed  that  the  schooners  ran  quite  three  marine  leagues 
in  the  hour  that  succeeded  the  overturning  of  the  berg.- 
There  were  moments  when  the  wind  blew  furiously ;  and, 
taking  all  the  accessories  of  that  remarkable  view  into  the 
account,  the  scene  resembled  one  that  the  imagination 
might  present  to  the  mind  in  its  highest  flights,  but  which 
few  could  ever  hope  to  see  with  their  proper  eyes.  The 
moon-light,  the  crowd  of  ice-bergs  of  all  shapes  and  dimen 
sions,  seeming  to  flit  past  by  the  rapid  movements  of  the 
vessels;  the  variety  of  hues,  from  spectral  white  to  tints 
of  orange  and  emerald,  pale  at  that  hour  yet  distinct; 
streets  and  lanes  that  were  scarce  opened  ere  they  were 
passed ;  together  with  all  the  fantastic  images  that  such 
objects  conjured  to  the  thoughts;  contributed  to  make  that 
hour  much  the  most  wonderful  that  Roswell  Gardiner  had 
ever  passed.  To  add  to  the  excitement,  a  couple  of  whales 
came  blowing  up  the  passage,  coming  within  a  hundred 
yards  of  the  schooners.  They  were  fin-backs,  which  are 
rarely  if  ever  taken,  and  were  suffered  to  pass  unharmed. 
To  capture  a  whale,  however,  amid  so  many  bergs,  would 
be  next  to  impossible,  unless  the  animal  were  killed  by  the 
blow  of  the  harpoon,  without  requiring  the  keener  thrust 
of  the  lance. 

At  the  end  of  the  hour  mentioned,  the  Sea  Lion  of  the 
Vineyard  rapidly  changed  her  course,  hauling  up  by  a  sud 
den  movement  to  the  westward.  The  passage  before  her 
was  closed,  and  there  remained  but  one  visible  outlet,  to 
wards  which  the  schooner  slowly  made  her  way,  having 


274  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

got  rather  too  much  to  leeward  of  it,  in  consequence  ot 
not  earlier  seeing  the  necessity  for  the  change  of  course  in 
that  dim  and  deceptive  light.  Roswell,  being  to  windward, 
had  less  difficulty,  but,  notwithstanding,  he  kept  his  station 
on  his  consort's  quarter,  declining  to  lead.  The  passage  into 
which  Daggett  barely  succeeded  in  carrying  his  schooner 
was  fearfully  narrow,  and  appeared  to  be  fast  closing; 
though  it  was  much  wider  further  ahead,  could  the  schooners 
but  get  through  the  first  dangerous  strait.  Roswell  re 
monstrated  ere  the  leading  vessel  entered,  and  pointed  out 
to  Daggett  the  fact  that  the  bergs  were  evidently  closing, 
each  instant  increasing  their  movement,  most  probably 
through  the  force  of  attraction.  It  is  known  that  ships  are 
thus  brought  in  contact  in  calms,  and  it  is  thought  a  simi 
lar  influence  is  exercised  on  the  ice-bergs.  At  all  events, 
the  wind,  the  current,  or  attraction,  was  fast  closing  the 
passage  through  which  the  schooners  had  now  to  go. 

Scarcely  was  Daggett  within  the  channel,  when  an  enor 
mous  mass  fell  from  the  summit  of  one  of  the  bergs,  literally 
closing  the  passage  in  his  wake,  while  it  compelled  Gardi 
ner  to  put  his  helm  down,  and  to  tack  ship,  standing  off 
from  the  tottering  berg.  The  scene  that  followed  was 
frightful !  The  cries  on  Aboard  the  leading  craft  denoted 
her  peril,  but  it  was  not  possible  for  Roswell  to  penetrate 
to  her  with  his  vessel.  All  he  could  do  was  to  heave-to  his 
own  schooner,  lower  a  boat,-  and  pull  back  towards  the 
point  of  danger.  This  he  did  at  once,  manfully,  but  with 
an  anxious  mind  and  throbbing  heart.  He  actually  urged 
his  boat  into  the  chasm  beneath  an  arch  in  the  fallen  frag 
ment,  and  made  his  way  to  the  very  side  of  Daggett's  vesseL 
The  last  was  nipped  again,  and  that  badly,  but  was  not 
absolutely  lost.  The  falling  fragment  from  the  berg  alone 
prevented  her  and  all  in  her  from  being  ground  into  powder. 
This  block,  of  enormous  size,  kept  the  two  bergs  asunder; 
and  now  that  they  could  not  absolutely  come  together,  they 
began  slowly  to  turn  in  the  current,  gradually  opening  and 
separating,  at  the  very  point  where  they  had  so  lately  seem 
ed  attracted  to  a  closer  union.  In  an  hour  the  way  was 
clear,  and  the  boats  towed  the  schooner  stern  foremost  into 
the  broader  passage. 


THE    SEA    LIONS.  275 


CHAPTER  XX 

'*A  voice  upon  the  prairies, 
A  cry  of  woman's  woe, 
That  mingleth  with  the  autumn  blast 
All  fitfully  and  low." 

Mas.  SIOOURNET. 

THE  accident  to  the  Sea  Lion  of  the  Vineyard  occurred 
very  near  the  close  of  the  month  of  March,  which,  in  the 
southern  hemisphere,  corresponds  to  our  month  of  Septem 
ber.  This  was  somewhat  late  for  a  vessel  to  remain  in  so 
high  a  latitude,  though  it  was  not  absolutely  dangerous  to 
be  found  there  several  weeks  longer.  We  have  given  a 
glance  at  Mary  Pratt  and  her  uncle,  about  this  time;  but 
it  has  now  become  expedient  to  carry  the  reader  forward 
for  a  considerable  period,  and  take  another  look  at  our  he 
roine  and  her  miserly  uncle,  some  seven  months  later.  In 
that  interval  a  great  change  had  come  over  the  deacon  and 
his  niece ;  and  hope  had  nearly  deserted  all  those  who  had 
friends  on  board  the  Sea  Lion  of  Oyster  Pond,  as  the  fol 
lowing  explanation  will  show  was  reasonable,  and  to  be 
expected. 

When  Captain  Gardiner  sailed,  it  was  understood  that 
his  absence  would  not  extend  beyond  a  single  season.  All 
who  had  friends  and  connections  on  board  his  schooner, 
had  been  assured  of  this ;  arid  great  was  the  anxiety,  and 
deep  the  disappointment,  when  the  first  of  our  own  summer 
months  failed  to  bring  back  the  adventurers.  As  week 
succeeded  week,  and  the  vessel  did  not  return,  the  concern 
increased,  until  hope  began  to  be  lost  in  apprehension. 
Deacon  Pratt  groaned  in  spirit  over  his  loss,  finding  little 
consolation  in  the  gains  secured  by  means  of  the  oil  sent 
home,  as  is  apt  to  be  the  case  with  the  avaricious,  when 
their  hearts  are  once  set  on  gain.  As  for  Mary,  the  load 
on  her  heart  increased  in  weight,  as  it  might  be,  day  by 
day,  until  those  smiles,  which  had  caused  her  sweet  coun 
tenance  to  be  radiant  with  innocent  joy,  entirely  disappeared, 
and  she  was  seen  to  smile  no  more.  Still,  complaints  never 
24 


THE    SEA    LIONS. 

passed  her  lips.  She  prayed  much,  and  found  all  her  relief 
in  such  pursuits  as  comported  with  her  feelings,  but  she 
seldom  spoke  of  her  grief;  never,  except  at  weak  moments, 
when  her  querulous  kinsman  introduced  the  subject,  in  his 
frequent  lamentations  over  his  losses. 

The  month  of  November  is  apt  to  be  stormy  on  the  At 
lantic  coasts  of  the  republic.  It  is  true  that  the  heaviest 
gales  do  not  then  occur,  but  the  weather  is  generally  stern 
and  wintry,  and  the  winds  are  apt  to  be  high  and  boiste 
rous.  At  a  place  like  Oyster  Pond,  the  gales  from  the 
ocean  are  felt  with  almost  as  much  power  as  on  board  a 
vessel  at  sea;  and  Mary  became  keenly  sensible  of  the 
change  from  the  bland  breezes  of  summer  to  the  sterner 
blasts  of  autumn.  As  for  the  deacon,  his  health  was  actu 
ally  giving  way  before  anxiety,  until  the  result  was  getting 
to  be  a  matter  of  doubt.  Premature  old  age  appeared  to 
have  settled  on  him,  and  his  niece  had  privately  consulted 
Dr.  Sage  on  his  case.  The  excellent  girl  was  grieved  to 
find  that  the  mind  of  her  uncle  grew  more  worldly,  his  de 
sires  for  wealth  more  grasping,  as  he  was  losing  his  hold 
on  life,  and  was  approaching  nearer  to  that  hour  when  time 
is  succeeded  by  eternity.  All  this  while,  however,  Deacon 
Pratt  "  kept  about,"  as  he  expressed  it  himself,  and  strug 
gled  to  look  after  his  interests,  as  had  been  his  practice 
through  life.  He  collected  his  debts,  foreclosed  his  mort 
gages  when  necessary,  drove  tight  bargains  for  his  wood 
and  other  saleable  articles,  and  neglected  nothing  that  he 
thought  would  tend  to  increase  his  gains.  Still,  his  heart 
was  with  his  schooner ;  for  he  had  expected  much  from 
that  adventure,  and  the  disappointment  was  in  proportion 
to  the  former  hopes. 

One  day,  near  (lie  close  of  November,  the  deacon  and  his 
niece  were  alone  together  in  the  "  keeping-room," — as  it 
was,  if  it  be  not  still,  the  custom  among  persons  of  New 
England  origin  to  call  the  ordinary  sitting-apartment, — he 
bolstered  up  in  an  easy-chair,  on  account  of  increasing  in 
firmities,  and  she  plying  the  needle  in  her  customary  way. 
The  chairs  of  both  were  so  placed  that  it  was  easy  for  either 
to  look  out  upon  that  bay,  now  of  a  wintry  aspect,  where 
Roswell  had  last  anchored,  previously  to  sailing. 

"  What  a  pleasant  sight  it  would  be,  uncle,"  Mary,  al- 


THE    SEA    LIONS.  277 

most  unconsciously  to  herself,  remarked,  as,  with  tearful 
eyes,  she  sat  gazing  intently  on  the  water,  "  could  we  only 
awake  and  find  the  Sea  Lion  at  anchor,  under  the  point  of 
Gardiner's  Island  !  I  often  fancy  that  such  may  be — nay, 
must  be  the  case  yet ;  but  it  never  comes  to  pass !  I  would 
not  tell  you  yesterday,  for  you  did  not  seem  to  be  as  well 
as  common,  but  I  have  got  an  answer,  by  Baiting  Joe,  to 
my  letter  sent  across  to  the  Vineyard." 

The  deacon  started,  and  half-turned  his  body  towards 
his  niece,  on  whose  face  his  own  sunken  eyes  were  now 
fastened  with  almost  ferocious  interest.  It  was  the  love  of 
Mammon,  stirring  within  him  the  lingering  remains  of  co- 
vetousness.  He  thought  of  his  property,  while  Mary  thought 
of  those  whose  lives  had  been  endangered,  if  not  lost,  by 
the  unhappy  adventure.  The  latter  understood  the  look, 
however,  so  far  as  to  answer  its  inquiry,  in  her  usual  gentle, 
feminine  voice. 

"  I  am  sorry  to  say,  sir,  that  no  news  has  been  heard 
from  Captain  Daggett,  or  any  of  his  people,"  was  the  sad 
reply  to  this  silent  interrogatory.  "  No  one  on  the  island 
has  heard  a  word  from  the  Vineyard  vessel  since  the  day 
before  she  sailed  from  Rio.  There  is  the  same  uneasiness 
felt  among  Captain  Daggett's  friends,  as  we  feel  for  poor 
Roswell.  They  think,  however,  that  the  two  vessels  have 
kept  together,  and  believe  that  the  same  fate  has  befallen 
both." 

"  Heaven  forbid !"  exclaimed  the  deacon,  as  sharply  as 
wasting  lungs  would  allow — "  Heaven  forbid !  If  Gar'ner 
has  let  that  Daggett  keep  in  his  company  an  hour  longer 
than  was  necessary,  he  has  deserved  to  meet  with  shipwreck, 
though  the  loss  always  falls  heaviest  on  the  owners." 

"  Surely,  uncle,  it  is  more  cheering  to  think  that  the  two 
schooners  are  together  in  those  dangerous  seas,  than  to 
imagine  one,  alone,  left  to  meet  the  risks,  without  a  com 
panion  !" 

"  You  talk  idly,  gal — as  women  always  talk.  If  you 
know'd  all,  you  wouldn't  think  of  such  a  thing.'*' 

"  So  you  have  said  often,  uncle,  and  I  fear  there  is  some 
mystery  preying  all  this  time  on  your  spirits.  Why  not 
relieve  your  mind,  by  telling  your  troubles  to  me?  I  am 
your  child  in  affection,  if  not  by  birth." 


278  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

"You're  a  good  gal,  Mary,"  answered  the  deacon,  a 
good  deal  softened  by  the  plaintive  tones  of  one  of  the  gen 
tlest  voices  that  ever  fell  on  human  ear,  "  an  excellent  crea- 
tur'  at  the  bottom — but  of  course  you  know  nothing  of  the 
sealing  business,  and  next  to  nothing  about  taking  care  of 
property." 

"  I  hope  you  do  not  think  me  wasteful,  sir?  That  is  a 
character  I  should  not  like  to  possess." 

"  No,  not  wasteful ;  on  the  contrary,  curful  (so  the  dea 
con  pronounced  the  word)  and  considerate  enough,  as  to 
keeping,  but  awfully  indifferent  as  to  getting.  Had  I  been 
as  indifferent  as  you  are  yourself,  your  futur'  days  would 
not  be  so  comfortable  and  happy  as  they  are  now  likely  to 
be,  a'ter  my  departure — if  depart  I  tnust." 

"  My  future  life  happy  and  comfortable  !"  thought  Mary; 
then  she  struggled  to  be  satisfied  with  her  lot,  and  contented 
with  the  decrees  of  Providence.  "  It  is  but  a  few  hours 
that  we  live  in  this  state  of  trials,  compared  to  the  endless 
existence  that  is  to  succeed  it." 

"  I  wish  I  knew  all  about  this  voyage  of  Roswell's,"  she 
added,  aloud ;  for  she  was  perfectly  certain  that  there  was 
something  to  be  told  that,  as  yet,  the  deacon  had  concealed 
from  her.  "  It  might  relieve  your  mind,  and  lighten  your 
spirits  of  a  burthen,  to  make  me  a  confidant." 

The  deacon  mused  in  silence  for  more  than  five  minutes. 
Seldom  had  his  thoughts  gone  over  so  wide  a  reach  of  in 
terests  and  events  in  so  short  a  space  of  time ;  but  the  con 
clusion  was  clear  and  decided. 

"You  ought  to  know  all,  Mary,  and  you  shall  know  all/' 
he  answered,  in  the  manner  of  a  man  who  had  made  up  his 
mind  beyond  appeal.  "  Gar'ner  has  gone  a'ter  seal  to  some 
islands  that  the  Daggett  who  died  here,  about  a  year  and 
a  half  ago,  told  me  of;  islands  of  which  nobody  know'd 
anything,  according  to  his  account,  but  himself.  His  ship 
mates,  that  saw  the  place  when  he  saw  it,  were  all  dead, 
afore  he  let  me  into  the  secret." 

"  I  have  long  suspected  something  of  the  sort,  sir,  and 
have  also  supposed  that  the  people  on  Martha's  Vineyard 
had  got  some  news  of  this  place,  by  the  manner  in  which 
Captain  Daggett  has  acted." 

"  Isn't  it  wonderful,  gal  1     Islands,  they  tell  me,  where 


THE    SEA    LIONS.  279 

a  schooner  can  fill  up  with  ile  and  skins,  in  the  shortest 
season  in  which  the  sun  ever  shone  upon  an  antarctic  sum 
mer  !  Wonderful !  wonderful !" 

"  Very  extraordinary,  perhaps ;  but  we  should  remember, 
uncle,  at  how  much  risk  the  young  men  of  the  country  go 
on  these  distant  voyages,  and  how  dearly  their  profits  are 
sometimes  bought." 

"  Bought !  If  the  schooner  would  only  come  back,  I 
should  think  nothing  of  all  that.  It 's  the  cost  of  the  vessel 
and  outfit,  Mary,  that  weighs  so  much  on  my  spirits.  Well, 
Gar'ner's  first  business  is  with  them  islands,  which  are  at 
an  awful  distance  for  one  to  trust  his  property ;  but,  '  no 
thing  ventured,  nothing  got,'  they  say.  By  my  calculations, 
the  schooner  has  had  to  go  a  good  five  hundred  miles  among 
the  ice,  to  get  to  the  spot ;  not  such  ice  as  a  body  falls  in 
with,  in  going  and  coming  between  England  and  Ameriky, 
as  we  read  of  in  the  papers,  but  ice  that  covers  the  sea  as 
we  sometimes  see  it  piled  up  in  Gar'ner's  Bay,  only  a  hun 
dred  times  higher,  and  deeper,  and  broader,  and  colder ! 
It 's  desperate  cold  ice,  the  sealers  all  tell  me,  that  of  the 
antarctic  seas.  Some  on  'em  think  it's  colder  down  south 
than  it  is  the  other  way,  up  towards  Greenland  and  Iceland 
itself.  It's  extr'or'nary,  Mary,  that  the  weather  should 
grow  cold  as  a  body  journeys  south ;  but  so  it  is,  by  all 
accounts.  1  never  could  understand  it,  and  it  isn't  so  in 
Ameriky,  I  'm  sartain.  I  suppose  it  must  come  of  their 
turning  the  months  round,  and  having  their  winter  in  the 
midst  of  the  dog-days.  I  never  could  understand  it,  though 
Gar'ner  has  tried,  more  than  once,  to  reason  me  into  it.  I 
believe,  but  I  don't  understand." 

"  It  is  all  told  in  my  geography  here,"  answered  Mary, 
mechanically  taking  down  the  book,  for  her  thoughts  were 
far  away  in  those  icy  seas  that  her  uncle  had  been  so  gra 
phically  describing.  "I  dare  say  we  can  find  it  all  explained 
in  the  elementary  parts  of  this  book." 

"  They  do  make  their  geographies  useful,  now-a-days," 
said  the  deacon,  with  rather  more  animation  than  he  had 
shown  before,  that  morning.  "  They  've  got  'em  to  be, 
now,  almost  as  useful  as  almanacs.  Read  what  it  saya 
about  the  seasons,  child." 

"  It  says,  sir,  that  the  changes  in  the  seasons  are  owing 
24* 


280  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

to  'the  inclination  of  the  earth's  axis  to  the  plane  of  its 
orbit.3  I  do  not  exactly  understand  what  that  means,  uncle.' 

"No, — it's  not  as  clear  as  it  might  be. — The  declina 
tion—" 

"/nclination,  sir,  is  what  is  printed  here." 

"Ay,  inclination.  I  do  not  see  why  any  one  should  have 
much  inclination  for  winter,  but  so  it  must  be,  I  suppose. 
The  "arth's  orbit  has  an  inclination  towards  changes,'  you 
say." 

"  The  changes  in  the  seasons,  sir,  are  owing  to  '  the  in 
clination  of  the  earth's  axis  to  the  plane  of  its  orbit.'  It 
does  not  say  that  the  orbit  has  an  inclination  in  any  parti 
cular  way." 

Thus  was  it  with  Mary  Pratt,  and  thus  was  it  with  her 
uncle,  the  deacon.  One  of  the  plainest  problems  in  natu 
ral  philosophy  was  Hebrew  to  both,  simply  because  the  ca 
pacity  that  Providence  had  so  freely  bestowed  on  each  had 
never  been  turned  to  the  consideration  of  such  useful  stu 
dies.  But,  while  the  mind  of  Mary  Pratt  was  thus  obscured 
on  this  simple,  and,  to  such  as  choose  to  give  it  an  hour  of 
reflection,  perfectly  intelligible  proposition,  it  was  radiant 
as  the  day  on  another  mystery,  and  one  that  has  confounded 
thousands  of  the  learned,  as  well  as  of  the  unlearned.  To 
her  intellect,  nothing  was  clearer,  no  moral  truth  more 
vivid,  no  physical  fact  more  certain,  than  the  incarnation 
of  the  Son  of  God.  She  had  the  "  evidence  of  things  not 
seen,"  in  the  fulness  of  Divine  grace;  and  was  profound 
on  this,  the  greatest  concern  of  human  life,  while  unable 
even  to  comprehend  how  the  "  inclination  of  the  earth's 
axis  to  the  plane  of  its  orbit"  could  be  the  cause  of  the 
change  of  the  seasons.  And  was  it  thus  with  her  uncle  ? — 
he  who  was  a  pillar  of  the  "  meeting,"  whose  name  was 
often  in  men's  mouths  as  a  "  shining  light,"  and  who  had 
got  to  be  identified  with  religion  in  his  own  neighbourhood, 
to  a  degree  that  caused  most  persons  to  think  of  Deacon 
Pratt,  when  they  should  be  thinking  of  the  Saviour?  We 
are  afraid  he  knew  as  little  of  one  of  these  propositions  as 
of  the  other. 

*'  It 's  very  extr'or'nary,"  resumed  the  deacon,  after  ru 
minating  on  the  matter  for  a  few  moments,  "  but  I  suppose 
it  is  so.  Wasn't  it  for  this  '  inclination1  to  cold  weathei, 


THE    SEA     LIONS.  281 

our  vessels  might  go  and  seal  under  as  pleasant  skies  as  we 
have  here  in  June.  But,  Mary,  I  suppose  that  wasn't  to 
be,  or  it  would  be." 

"  There  would  have  been  no  seals,  most  likely,  uncle,  if 
there  was  no  ice.  They  tell  me  that  such  creatures  love 
the  cold  and  the  ice,  and  the  frozen  oceans.  Too  much 
warm  weather  would  not  suit  them." 

"  But,  Mary,  it  might  suit  other  folks!  Gar'ner's  whole 
ar'nd  isn't  among  the  ice,  or  a'ter  them  seals." 

"  I  do  not  know  that  I  understand  you,  sir.  Surely 
Roswell  has  gone  on  a  sealing  voyage." 

"  Sartain ;  there 's  no  mistake  about  that.  But  there 
may  be  many  stopping-places  in  so  long  a  road." 

"  Do  you  mean,  sir,  that  he  is  to  use  any  of  these  stop 
ping-places,  as  you  call  them?"  asked  Mary,  eagerly,  half- 
breathless  with  her  anxiety  to  hear  all.  "  You  said  some 
thing  about  the  West  Indies  once." 

"  Harkee,  Mary — just  look  out  into  the  entry  and  see  if 
the  kitchen  door  is  shut.  And  now  come  nearer  to  me, 
child,  so  that  there  may  be  no  need  of  bawling  what  I  've 
got  to  say  all  over  Oyster  Pond.  There,  sit  down,  my  dear, 
and  don't  look  so  eager,  as  if  you  wanted  to  eat  me,  or  my 
mind  may  misgive  me,  and  then  I  couldn't  tell  you,  a'ter 
all.  Perhaps  it  would  be  best,  if  I  was  to  keep  my  own 
secret." 

"  Not  if  it  has  anything  to  do  with  Roswell,  dear  uncle ; 
not  if  it  has  anything  to  do  with  him !  You  have  often 
advised  me  to  marry  him,  and  I  ought  to  know  all  about 
the  man  you  wish  me  to  marry." 

"  Yes,  Gar'ner  will  make  a  right  good  husband  for  any 
young  woman,  and  I  do  advise  you  to  have  him.  You  are 
my  brother's  da'ghter,  Mary,  and  t  give  you  this  advice, 
which  I  should  give  you  all  the  same,  had  you  been  my 
own  child,  instead  of  his'n." 

"  Yes,  sir,  I  know  that. — But  what  about  Roswell,  and 
his  having  to  stop,  on  his  way  home?" 

"  Why,  you  must  know,  Mary,  that  this  v'y'ge  came  al 
together  out  of  that  seaman  who  died  among  us,  last  year. 
I  was  kind  to  him,  as  you  may  remember,  and  helped  him 
to  many  little  odd  comforts," — odd  enough  were  they,  of  a 
verity, — "  and  he  was  grateful.  Of  all  virtues,  give  me 


282  THE    SEA    LIONS 

gratitude,  say  I !  It  is  the  noblest,  as  it  is  the  most  cincom* 
mon  of  all  our  good  qualities.  How  little  have  I  met  with, 
in  my  day !  Of  all  the  presents  I  have  made,  and  gifts  be 
stowed,  and  good  acts  done,  not  one  in  ten  has  ever  met 
with  any  gratitude." 

Mary  sighed ;  for  well  did  she  know  how  little  he  had 
given,  of  his  abundance,  to  relieve  the  wants  of  his  fellow- 
creatures.  She  sighed,  too,  with  a  sort  of  mild  impatience 
that  the  information  she  sought  with  so  much  eagerness, 
was  so  long  and  needlessly  delayed.  But  the  deacon  hat 
made  up  his  mind  to  tell  her  all. 

"  Yes,  Gar'ner  has  got  something  to  do,  beside  sealing," 
he  resumed  of  himself,  when  his  regret  at  the  prevalence 
of  ingratitude  among  men  had  exhausted  itself.  "  Suthin'  " 
— for  this  was  the  way  he  pronounced  that  word — "  that  is 
of  more  importance  than  the  schooner's  hold  full  of  ile.  He 
is  ile,  I  know,  child ;  but  gold  is  gold.  What  do  you  think 
of  that?" 

"  Is  Roswell,  then,  to  stop  at  Rio  again,  in  order  to  sell 
his  oil,  and  send  the  receipts  home  in  gold?" 

"Better  than  that  —  much  better  than  that,  if  he  gets 
back  at  all."  Mary  felt  a  chill  at  her  heart.  "  Yes,  that  is 
the  p'int  —  if  he  gets  back  at  all.  If  Gar'ner  ever  does 
come  home,  child,  I  shall  expect  to  see  him  return  with  a 
considerable  sized  keg — almost  a  barrel,  by  all  accounts — 
filled  with  gold  !" 

The  deacon  stared  about  him  as  he  made  this  announce 
ment,  like  a  man  who  was  afraid  that  he  was  telling  too 
much.  Nevertheless,  it  was  to  his  own  niece,  his  brother's 
daughter,  that  he  had  confided  thus  much  of  his  great  se 
cret — and  reflection  re-assured  him. 

"  How  is  Roswell  to  get  all  this  gold,  uncle,  unless  he 
sells  his  cargo?"  Mary  asked,  with  obvious  solicitude. 

"That's  another  p'int.  I'll  tell  you  all  about  it,  gal, 
and  you  '11  see  the  importance  of  keeping  the  secret.  This 
Daggett  —  not  the  one  who  is  out  in  another  schooner,  an 
other  Sea  Lion,  as  it  might  be,  but  his  uncle,  who  died 
down  here  at  the  Widow  White's — well,  that  Daggett  told 
more  than  the  latitude  and  longitude  of  the  sealing  islands 
— he  told  me  of  a  buried  treasure !" 


THE    SEA    LIONS.  283 

u  Buried  treasure ! — Buried  by  whom,  and  consisting  of 
what,  uncle?" 

"  Buried  by  seamen  who  make  free  with  the  goods  of 
others  on  the  high  seas,  ag'in  the  time  when  they  might 
come  back  and  dig  it  up,  and  carry  it  away  to  be  used. 
Consisting  of  what,  indeed  !  Consisting  principally,  ac- 
cordin'  to  Daggett's  account,  of  heavy  doubloons ;  though 
there  was  a  lot  of  old  English  guineas  among  'em.  Yes,  I 
remember  that  he  spoke  of  them  guineas  —  three  thousand 
and  odd,  and  nearly  as  many  doubloons !" 

"  Was  Daggett,  then,  a  pirate,  sir  ? — for  they  who  make 
free  with  the  goods  of  others  on  the  high  seas  are  neither 
more  nor  less  than  pirates." 

"  No;  not  he,  himself.  He  got  this  secret  from  one  who 
was  a  pirate,  however,  and  who  was  a  prisoner  in  a  gaol 
where  he  was  himself  confined  for  smuggling.  Yes;  that 
man  told  him  all  about  the  buried  treasure,  in  return  for 
some  acts  of  kindness  shown  him  by  Daggett.  It's  well 
to  be  kind  sometimes,  Mary." 

"  It  is  well  to  be  kind  always,  sir ;  even  when  it  is  mis 
understood,  and  the  kindness  is  abused.  What  was  the 
redemption  but  kindness  and  love,  and  god-like  compassion 
on  those  who  neither  understood  it  nor  felt  it  ?  But  money 
collected  and  buried  by  pirates  can  never  become  yours, 
uncle ;  nor  can  it  ever  become  the  property  of  Roswell 
Gardiner." 

"  Whose  is  it,  then,  gal  ?"  demanded  the  deacon,  sharply. 
"  Gar'ner  had  some  such  silly  notion  in  his  head  when  I 
first  told  him  of  this  treasure ;  but  I  soon  brought  him  to 
hear  reason." 

"  I  think  Roswell  must  always  have  seen  that  a  treasure 
obtained  by  robbery  can  never  justly  belong  to  any  but  its 
rightful  owner." 

"And  who  is  this  rightful  owner,  pray?  or  owners,  I 
might  say ;  for  the  gold  was  picked  up,  here  and  there,  out 
of  all  question,  from  many  hands.  Now,  supposing  Gar'ner 
gets  this  treasure,  as  I  still  hope  he  may,  though  he  is  an 
awful  time  about  it  —  but  suppose  he  gets  it,  how  is  he  to 
find  the  rightful  owners?  There  it  is,  a  bag  of  doubloons, 
say — all  looking  just  alike,  with  the  head  of  a  king,  a  Don 
Somebody,  and  the  date,  and  the  Latin  and  Greek  —  now 


284  THE     SEA    LIONS. 

who  can  say  that  '  this  is  my  doubloon ;  I  lost  it  at  such  a 
time — it  was  taken  from  me  by  such  a  pirate,  in  such  sea; 
and  I  was  whipped  till  I  told  the  thieves  where  I  had  hid 
the  gold  ?'  No,  no,  Mary ;  depend  on  't,  no  action  of  'plevy 
would  lie  ag'in  a  single  one  of  all  them  pieces.  They  are 
lost,  one  and  all,  to  their  former  owners,  and  will  belong 
jto  the  man  that  succeeds  in  getting  hold  on  'em  ag'in;  who 
Will  become  a  rightful  owner  in  his  turn.  All  property 
comes  from  law;  and  if  the  law  won't  'plevy  money  got  in 
this  way,  nobody  can  maintain  a  claim  to  it." 

"  I  should  be  very,  very  sorry,  my  dear  uncle,  to  have 
Roswell  enrich  himself  in  this  way." 

"  You  talk  like  a  silly  young  woman,  and  one  that  doesn't 
know  her  own  rights.  We  had  no  hand  in  robbing  the  folks 
of  their  gold.  They  lost  it  years  ago,  and  may  be  dead — 
probably  are,  or  they  would  make  some  stir  about  it  —  or 
have  forgotten  it,  and  couldn't  for  their  lives  tell  a  single 
one  of  the  coins  they  once  had  in  their  possession ;  and 
don't  know  whether  what  they  lost  was  thrown  into  the 
sea,  or  buried  in  the  sand  on  a  key  —  Mary,  child;  you 
must  never  mention  anything  I  tell  you  on  this  subject !" 

"  You  need  fear  nothing,  sir,  from  me.  But  I  do  most 
earnestly  hope  Roswell  will  have  nothing  to  do  with  any 
such  ill-gotten  wealth.  He  is  too  noble-hearted  and  gener 
ous  to  get  rich  in  this  way." 

"  Well,  well,  say  no  more  about  it,  child ;  you  're  romantic 
and  notional.  Just  pour  out  my  drops;  for  all  this  talking 
makes  me  breathe  thick.  I  'm  not  what  I  was,  Mary,  and 
cannot  last  long;  but  was  it  the  last  breath  I  drew,  I  would 
stand  to  it,  that  treasure  desarted  and  found  in  this  way 
belongs  to  the  last  holder.  I  go  by  the  law,  however;  let 
Gar'ner  only  find  it  —  well,  well,  I'll  say  no  more  about  it 
now;  for  it  distresses  you,  and  that  I  don't  like  to  see. 
Go  and  hunt  up  the  Spectator,  child,  and  look  for  the 
whaling  news  —  perhaps  there  may  be  suthin'  about  the 
sealers  too." 

Mary  did  not  require  to  be  told  twice  to  do  as  her  uncle 
requested.  The  paper  was  soon  found,  and  the  column 
that  contained  the  marine  intelligence  consulted.  The 
niece  read  a  long  account  of  whalers  spoken,  with  so  many 
hundred  or  so  many  thousand  barrels  of  oil  on  board,  but 


THE    SEA    LIONS.  285 

could  discover  no  allusion  to  any  sealer.  At  length  she 
turned  her  eyes  into  the  body  of  the  journal,  which  being 
semi-weekly,  or  tri-weekly,  was  crowded  with  matter,  and 
started  at  seeing  a  paragraph  to  the  following  effect : — 

"  By  the  arrival  of  the  Twin  Sisters  at  Stonington,  we 
learn  that  the  ice  has  been  found  farther  north  in  the 
southern  hemisphere  this  season,  than  it  has  been  known 
to  be  for  many  years.  The  sealers  have  had  a  great  deal 
of  difficulty  in  making  their  way  through  it;  and  even 
vessels  bound  round  the  Cape  oif  Good  Hope  have  been 
much  embarrassed  by  its  presence." 

"That's  it! — Yes,  Mary,  that's  just  it!"  exclaimed  the 
deacon.  "It's  that  awful  ice.  If  'twasn't  for  the  ice, 
eealin'  would  be  as  pleasant  a  calling  as  preachin'  the  gos 
pel  !  It  is  possible  that  this  ice  has  turned  Gar'ner  back, 
when  he  has  been  on  his  way  home,  and  that  he  has  been 
waiting  for  a  better  time  to  come  north.  There 's  one  good 
p'int  in  this  news  —  they  tell  me  that  when  the  ice  is  seen 
drifting  about  in  low  latitudes,  it 's  a  sign  there  's  less  of  it 
in  the  higher." 

"  The  Cape  of  Good  Hope  is  certainly,  in  one  sense,  in 
a  low  latitude,  uncle ;  if  I  remember  right,  it  is  not  as  far 
south  as  we  are  north ;  and,  as  you  say,  it  is  a  good  sign 
if  the  ice  has  come  anywhere  near  it." 

"  I  don't  say  it  has,  child ;  I  don't  say  it  has.  But  it  may 
have  come  to  the  northward  of  Cape  Horn,  and  that  will 
be  a  great  matter;  for  all  the  ice  that  is  drifting  about 
there  comes  from  the  polar  seas,  and  is  so  much  taken  out 
of  Gar'ner's  track." 

"  Still  he  must  come  through  it  to  get  home,"  returned 
Mary,  in  her  sweet,  melancholy  tones.  "Ah!  why  cannot 
men  be  content  with  the  blessings  that  Providence  places 
within  our  immediate  reach,  that  they  must  make  distant 
voyages  to  accumulate  others  !" 

"  You  like  your  tea,  I  fancy,  Mary  Pratt — and  the  sugar 
in  it,  and  your  silks  and  ribbons  that  I  've  seen  you  wear ; 
how  are  you  to  get  such  matters  if  there 's  to  be  no  going 
on  v'y'ges?  Tea  and  sugar,  and  silks  and  satins  don't 
grow  along  with  the  clams  on  '  Yster  Pond'  " — for  so  the 
deacon  uniformly  pronounced  the  word  '  oyster.' 

Mary  acknowledged  the  truth  of  what  was  said,  but 


286  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

changed  the  subject.  The  journal  contained  no  more  that 
related  to  sealing  or  sealers,  and  it  was  soon  laid  aside. 

"  It  may  be  that  Gar'ner  is  digging  for  the  buried  trea 
sure  all  this  time,"  the  deacon  at  length  resumed.  "  That 
may  be  the  reason  he  is  so  late.  If  so,  he  has  nothing  to 
dread  from  ice." 

"  I  understand  you,  sir,  that  this  money  is  supposed  to 
be  buried  on  a  key — in  the  West  Indies,  of  course." 

"  Don't  speak  so  loud,  Mary — there's  no  need  of  letting 
all  'Yster  Pond  know  where  the  treasure  is.  It  may  be  in 
the  West  Ingees,  or  it  may  not;  there's  keys  all  over  the 
'arth,  I  take  it." 

"  Do  you  not  think,  uncle,  that  Roswell  would  write,  if 
detained  long  among  those  keys?" 

"You  wouldn't  hear  to  post-offices  in  the  antarctic 
ocean,  and  now  you  want  to  put  them  on  the  sand-keys  of 
the  West  Ingees !  Woman's  always  a  sailin'  ag'in  wind 
and  tide." 

"  I  do  not  think  so,  sir,  in  this  case,  at  least.  There 
must  be  many  vessels  passing  among  the  keys  of  the  West 
Indies,  and  nothing  seems  to  me  to  be  easier  than  to  send 
letters  by  them.  I  am  quite  sure  Roswell  would  write,  if 
in  a  part  of  the  world  where  he  thought  what  he  wrote 
would  reach  us." 

"  Not  he — not  he — Gar'ner's  not  the  man  I  take  him  for, 
if  he  let  any  one  know  what  he  is  about  in  them  keys,  until 
he  had  done  up  all  his  business  there.  No,  no,  Mary.  We 
shall  never  hear  from  him  in  that  quarter  of  the  world.  It 
may  be  that  Gar'ner  is  a  digging  about,  and  has  difficulty 
in  finding  the  place ;  for  Daggett's  account  had  some  weak 
spots  in  it." 

Mary  made  no  reply,  though  she  thought  it  very  little 
likely  that  Roswell  would  pass  months  in  the  West  Indies 
employed  in  such  a  pursuit,  without  finding  the  means  of 
letting  her  know  where  he  was,  and  what  he  was  about. 
The  intercourse  between  these  young  people  was  somewhat 
peculiar,  and  ever  had  been.  In  listening  to  the  suit  of 
Roswell,  Mary  had  yielded  to  her  heart ;  in  hesitating  about 
accepting  him,  she  deferred  to  her  principles.  Usually,  a 
mother — not  a  managing,  match-making,  interested  parent, 
but  a  prudent,  feminine,  well-principled  mother — is  of  the 


THE    SEA     LIONS. 

last  importance  to  the  character  and  well-being  of  a  young 
woman.  It  sometimes  happens,  however,  that  a  female 
who  has  no  parent  of  her  own  sex,  and  who  is  early  made 
to  be  dependent  on  herself,  if  the  bias  of  her  mind  is  good, 
becomes  as  careful  and  prudent  of  herself  and  her  conduct 
as  the  advice  and  solicitude  of  the  most  tender  mother 
could  make  her.  Such  had  been  the  case  with  Mary  Pratt. 
Perfectly  conscious  of  her  own  deserted  situation,  high 
principled,  and  early  awake  to  the  defects  in  her  uncle's 
character,  she  had  laid  down  severe  rules  for  the  govern 
ment  of  her  own  conduct ;  and  from  these  rules  she  never 
departed.  Thus  it  was  that  she  permitted  Roswell  to  write, 
though  she  never  answered  his  letters.  She  permitted  him 
to  write,  because  she  had  promised  not  to  shut  her  ears  to 
his  suit,  so  long  as  he  practised  towards  her  his  native  and 
manly  candour;  concealing  none  of  his  opinions,  and  con 
fessing  his  deficiency  on  the  one  great  point  that  formed 
the  only  obstacle  to  their  union. 

A  young  woman  who  has  no  mother,  if  she  escape  the 
ills  attendant  on  the  privation  while  her  character  is  form 
ing,  is  very  apt  to  acquire  qualities  that  are  of  great  use  in 
her  future  life.  She  learns  to  rely  on  herself,  gets  accus 
tomed  to  think  and  act  like  an  accountable  being,  and  is 
far  more  likely  to  become  a  reasoning  and  useful  head  of  a 
family,  than  if  brought  up  in  dependence,  and  under  the 
control  of  even  the  best  maternal  government.  In  a  word, 
the  bias  of  the  mind  is  sooner  obtained  in  such  circum 
stances  than  when  others  do  so  much  of  the  thinking : 
whether  that  bias  be  in  a  right  or  in  a  wrong  direction. 
But  Mary  Pratt  had  early  taken  the  true  direction  in  all 
that  relates  to  opinion  and  character,  and  had  never  been 
wanting  to  herself  in  any  of  the  distinctive  and  discreet 
deportment  of  her  sex. 

Our  heroine  hardly  knew  whether  or  not  to  seek  for 
consolation  in  her  uncle's  suggestion  of  Roswell's  being 
detained  among  the  keys,  in  order  to  look  for  the  hidden 
treasure.  The  more  she  reflected  on  this  subject,  the  more 
did  it  embarrass  her.  Few  persons  who  knew  of  the  exist 
ence  of  such  a  deposit  would  hesitate  about  taking  posses 
sion  of  it;  and,  once  reclaimed,  in  what  way  were  the  best 
intentions  to  be  satisfied  with  the  disposition  of  the  gold  ? 
25 


288  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

To  find  the  owners  would  probably  be  impossible ;  and  3 
question  in  casuistry  remained.  Mary  pondered  much  on 
this  subject,  and  came  to  the  conclusion  that,  were  she  the 
person  to  whom  such  a  treasure  were  committed,  she  would 
set  aside  a  certain  period  for  advertising ;  and  failing  to 
discover  those  who  had  the  best  claim  to  the  money,  that 
she  would  appropriate  every  dollar  to  a  charity. 

Alas !  Little  did  Mary  understand  the  world.  The  fact 
that  money  was  thus  advertised  would  probably  have  brought 
forward  a  multitude  of  dishonest  pretenders  to  having  been 
robbed  by  pirates ;  and  scarce  a  doubloon  would  have  found 
its  way  into  the  pocket  of  its  right  owner,  even  had  she 
yielded  all  to  the  statements  of  such  claimants. 

All  this,  however,  did  not  bring  back  the  missing  Ros- 
well.  Another  winter  was  fast  approaching,  with  its  chill 
ing  storms  and  gales,  to  awaken  apprehensions  by  keeping 
the  turbulence  of  the  ocean,  as  it  might  be,  constantly  be 
fore  the  senses.  Not  a  week  now  passed  that  the  deacon 
did  not  get  a  letter  from  some  wife,  or  parent,  or  sister,  or 
perhaps  from  one  who  hesitated  to  avow  her  relations  to 
the  absent  mariner ;  all  inquiring  after  the  fate  of  those 
who  had  sailed  in  the  Sea  Lion  of  Oyster  Pond,  under  the 
orders  of  Captain  Roswell  Gardiner. 

Even  those  of  the  Vineyard  sent  across  questions,  and 
betrayed  anxiety  and  dread,  in  the  very  manner  of  putting 
their  interrogatories.  Each  day  did  the  deacon's  appre 
hensions  increase,  until  it  was  obvious  to  all  around  him 
that  this  cause,  united  to  others  that  were  more  purely 
physical,  perhaps,  was  seriously  undermining  his  health, 
and  menacing  his  existence.  It  is  a  sad  commentary  on 
the  greediness  for  gain,  manifested  by  this  person,  that  ere 
the  adventure  he  had  undertaken  on  the  strength  of  Dag- 
gett's  reluctant  communications  was  brought  to  any  appa 
rent  result,  he  himself  was  nearly  in  the  condition  of  that 
diseased  seaman,  with  as  little  prospect  of  being  benefited 
by  his  secrets  as  was  the  man  himself  who  first  communi 
cated  their  existence.  Mary  saw  all  this  clearly,  and 
mourned  almost  as  much  over  the  blindness  and  worldli- 
ness  of  her  uncle  as  she  did  over  the  now  nearly  assured 
fate  of  him  whom  she  had  so  profoundly  loved  in  her  heart's 
core, 


THE    SEA    LIONS.  289 

Day  by  day  did  time  roll  on,  without  bringing  any  tidings 
of  either  of  the  Sea  Lions.  The  deacon  grew  weak  fast, 
until  he  seldom  left  his  room,  and  still  more  rarely  the 
house.  It  was  now  that  he  was  induced  to  make  his  will, 
and  this  by  an  agency  so  singular  as  to  deserve  being  men 
tioned.  The  Rev.  Mr.  Whittle  broached  the  subject  one 
Jay,  not  with  any  interested  motive  ot  course,  but  simply 
oecause  the  "  meeting-house"  wanted  some  material  re 
pairs,  and  there  wa«  a  debt  on  the  congregation  that  it 
might  be  a  pleasure  to  one  who  had  long  stood  in  the  rela 
tion  to  it  that  Deacon  Pratt  filled,  to  pay  off,  when  he  no 
longer  had  any  occasion  for  the  money  for  himself.  It  is 
probable  the  deacon  at  length  felt  the  justice  of  this  re 
mark  ;  for  he  sent  to  Riverhead  for  a  lawyer,  and  made  a 
will  that  would  have  stood  even  the  petulant  and  envious 
justice  of  the  present  day ;  a  justice  that  inclines  to  divide 
a  man's  estate  infinitesimally,  lest  some  heir  become  a 
little  richer  than  his  neighbours.  After  all,  no  small  por 
tion  of.  that  which  struts  about  under  the  aspects  of  right, 
and  liberty,  and  benevolence,  is  in  truth  derived  from  some 
of  the  most  sneaking  propensities  of  human  nature ! 


CHAPTEE  XXI. 

"  I,  too,  have  seen  thee  on  thy  surging  path 

When  the  night-tempest  met  thee ;  thou  didst  dash 

Thy  white  arms  high  in  heaven,  as  if  in  wrath, 
Threatening  the  angry  sky ;  thy  waves  did  lash 
The  labouring  vessel,  and  with  deadening  crash 

Rush  madly  forth  to  scourge  its  groaning  sides ; 
Onward  thy  billows  came,  to  meet  and  clash 
In  a  wild  warfare,  till  the  lifted  tides 

Mingled  their  yesty  tops,  where  the  dark  storm-cloud  rides." 

PERCIVAL. 

THE  first  movement  of  the  mariner,  when  his  vessel  has 
been  brought  in  collision  with  any  hard  substance,  is  to 
sound  the  pumps.  This  very  necessary  duty  was  in  the  act 
of  performance  by  Daggett,  in  person,  even  while  the  boata 


290  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

of  Roswell  Gardiner  were  towing  his  strained  and  roughly 
treated  craft  into  the  open  water.  The  result  of  this  exami 
nation  was  waited  for  by  all  on  board,  including  Roswell, 
with  the  deepest  anxiety.  The  last  held  the  lantern  by 
which  the  height  of  the  water  in  the  well  was  to  be  ascer 
tained  ;  the  light  of  the  moon  scarce  sufficing  for  such  a 
purpose.  Daggett  stood  on  the  top  of  the  pump  himself, 
while  Gardiner  and  Macy  were  at  its  side.  At  length  the 
sounding-rod  came  up,  and  its  lower  end  was  held  out,  in 
order  to  ascertain  how  high  up  it  was  wet. 

"  Well,  what  do  you  make  of  it,  Gar'ner?"  Daggett  de 
manded,  a  little  impatiently.  "  Water  there  must  be;  for 
no  craft  that  floats  could  have  stood  such  a  squeeze,  and 
not  have  her  sides  open." 

"  There  must  be  near  three  feet  of  water  in  your  hold," 
answered  Roswell,  shaking  his  head.  "  If  this  goes  on, 
Captain  Daggett,  it  will  be  hard  work  to  keep  your  schooner 
afloat !" 

"Afloat  she  shall  be,  while  a  pump-break  can.  work. 
Here,  rig  this  larboard  pump  at  once,  and  get  it  in  mo 
tion." 

"  It  is  possible  that  your  seams  opened  under  the  nip,  and 
have  closed  again,  as  soon  as  the  schooner  got  free.  In  such 
a  case,  ten  minutes  at  the  pump  will  let  us  know  it." 

Although  there  is  no  duty  to  which  seamen  are  so  averse 
as  pumping — none,  perhaps,  that  is  actually  so  exhausting 
and  laborious — it  often  happens  that  they  have  recourse  to 
it  with  eagerness,  as  the  only  available  means  of  saving 
their  lives.  Such  was  now  the  case,  the  harsh  but  familiar 
strokes  of  the  pump-break  being  audible  amid  the  more 
solemn  and  grand  sounds  of  the  grating  of  ice-bergs,  the 
rushing  of  floes,  and  the  occasional  scuffling  and  howling 
of  the  winds.  The  last  appeared  to  have  changed  in  their 
direction,  however ;  a  circumstance  that  was  soon  noted, 
there  being  much  less  of  biting  cold  in  the  blasts  than  had 
been  felt  in  the  earlier  hours  of  the  night. 

"  I  do  believe  that  the  wind  has  got  round  here  to  the 
north-east,"  said  Roswell,  as  he  paced  the  quarter-deck 
with  Daggett,  still  holding  in  his  hand  the  well  wiped  and 
dried  sounding-rod,  in  readiness  for  another  triaJ.  "  That 
last  puff  was  right  in  our  teeth !" 


THE    SEA    LIONS.  291 

"Not  in  our  teeth,  Gar'ner;  no,  not  in  my  teeth,"  an 
swered  Daggett,  "  whatever  it  may  be  in  your'n.  I  shall 
try  to  get  back  to  the  island,  where  I  shall  endeavour  to 
beach  the  schooner,  and  get  a  look  at  her  leaks.  This  is 
the  most  I  can  hope  for.  It  would  never  do  to  think  of 
carrying  a  craft,  after  such  a  nip,  as  far  as  Rio,  pumping 
every  foot  of  the  way !" 

"  That  will  cause  a  great  delay,  Captain  Daggett,"  said 
Roswell,  doubtingly.  "  We  are  now  well  in  among  the 
first  great  body  of  the  ice ;  it  may  be  as  easy  to  work  our 
way  to  the  northward  of  it,  as  to  get  back  into  clear  water 
to  the  southward." 

"  I  dare  say  it  would ;  but,  back  I  go.  I  do  not  ask  you 
to  accompany  us,  Gar'ner ;  by  no  means.  A'ter  the  hand 
some  manner  in  which  you've  waited  for  us  so  long,  I 
couldn't  think  of  such  a  thing!  If  the  wind  has  r'ally  go; 
round  to  nothe-east,  and  1  begin  to  think  it  has,  I  shall  get 
the  schooner  into  the  cove  in  four-and-twenty  hours;  and 
there 's  as  pretty  a  spot  to  beach  her,  just  under  the  shelf 
where  we  kept  our  spare  casks,  as  a  body  can  wish.  In  a 
fortnight  we  '11  have  her  leaks  all  stopped,  and  be  jogging 
along  in  your  wake.  You  '11  tell  the  folks  on  Oyster  Pond 
that  we're  a-coming,  and  they'll  be  sure  to  send  the  news 
across  to  the  Vineyard." 

This  was  touching  Roswell  on  a  point  of  honour,  and 
Daggett  knew  it  very  well.  Generous  and  determined,  the 
young  man  was  much  more  easily  influenced  by  a  silent 
and  indirect  appeal  to  his  liberal  qualities,  than  he  could 
possibly  have  been  by  any  other  consideration.  The  idea 
of  deserting  a  companion  in  distress,  in  a  sea  like  that  in 
which  he  was,  caused  him  to  shrink  from  what,  under  other 
circumstances,  he  would  regard  as  an  imperative  duty. 
The  deacon,  and  still  more,  Mary,  called  him  north;  but 
the  necessities  of  the  Vineyarders  would  seem  to  chain  him 
to  their  fate. 

"  Let  us  see  what  the  pump  tells  us  now,"  cried  Roswell 
impatiently.  "  Perhaps  the  report  may  make  matters  better 
than  we  have  dared  to  hope  for.  If  the  pump  gains  on  the 
leak,  all  may  yet  be  well." 

"  It's  encouraging  and  hearty  to  hear  you  say  this;  but 
no  one  who  was  in  that  nip,  as  a  body  might  say,  can  ever 
25* 


292  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

expect  the  schooner  to  make  a  run  of  two  thousand  miles 
without  repairs.  To  my  eye,  Gar'ner,  these  bergs  are  se 
parating,  leaving  us  a  clearer  passage  back  to  the  open 
water." 

"  I  do  believe  you  are  right;  but  it  seems  a  sad  loss  of 
time,  and  a  great  risk,  to  go  through  these  mountains  again," 
returned  Roswell.  "  The  wind  has  shifted ;  and  the  nearest 
bergs,  from  some  cause  or  other,  are  slowly  opening ;  but 
recollect  what  a  mass  of  floe-ice  there  is  outside.  Let  us 
sound  again." 

The  process  was  renewed  this  time  much  easier  than 
before,  the  boxes  being  already  removed.  The  result  was 
soon  known. 

"Well,  what  news,  Gar'ner?"  demanded  Daggett,  lean 
ing  down,  in  a  vain  endeavour  to  perceive  the  almost  im 
perceptible  marks  that  distinguished  the  wet  part  of  the 
rod  from  that  which  was  dry.  "  Do  we  gain  on  the  leak, 
or  does  the  leak  gain  on  us?  God  send  it  may  be  the 
first !" 

"  God  has  so  sent  it,  sir,"  answered  Stimson,  reverently  ; 
for  he  was  holding  the  lantern,  having  remained  on  board 
the  damaged  vessel  by  the  order  of  his  officer.  "  It  is  He 
alone,  Captain  Daggett,  who  could  do  this  much  to  seamen 
in  distress." 

"  Then  to  God  be  thanks,  as  is  due !  If  we  can  but 
keep  the  leak  under,  the  schooner  may  yet  be  saved." 

"I  think  it  may  be  done,  Daggett,"  added  Roswell. 
"  That  one  pump  has  brought  the  water  down  more  than 
two  inches ;  and,  in  my  judgment,  the  two  together  would 
clear  her  entirely." 

"  We  '11  pump  her  till  she  sucks !"  cried  Daggett.  "  Rig 
the  other  pump,  men,  and  go  to  the  work  heartily." 

This  was  done,  though  not  until  Roswell  ordered  fully 
half  of  his  own  crew  to  come  to  the  assistance  of  his  con 
sort.  By  this  time  the  two  vessels  had  filled  away,  made 
more  sail,  and  were  running  off  before  the  new  wind,  re 
tracing  their  steps,  so  far  as  one  might  judge  of  the  position 
of  the  great  passage.  Daggett's  vessel  led,  and  Hazard 
followed;  Roswell  still  remaining  on  board  the  injured 
craft.  Thus  passed  the  next  few  hours.  The  pumps  soon 
Bucked,  and  it  was  satisfactorily  ascertained  that  the 


THE     SEA     LIONS.  293 

schooner  could  be  freed  from  the  water  by  working  at  them 
about  one-fourth  of  the  time.  This  was  a  bad  leak,  and 
one  that  would  have  caused  any  crew  to  become  exhausted 
in  the  course  of  a  few  days.  As  Roswell  ascertained  the 
facts  more  clearly,  he  became  better  satisfied  with  a  deci 
sion  that,  in  a  degree,  had  been  forced  on  him.  He  was 
passively  content  to  return  with  Daggett,  convinced  that 
taking  the  injured  vessel  to  Rio  was  out  of  the  question, 
until  some  attention  had  been  paid  to  her  damages. 

Fortune — or  as  Stimson  would  say,  Providence — favour 
ed  our  mariners  greatly  in  the  remainder  of  their  run  among 
the  bergs.  There  were  several  avalanches  of  snow  quite 
near  to  them,  and  one  more  berg  performed  a  revolution 
at  no  great  distance ;  but  no  injury  was  sustained  by  either 
vessel.  As  the  schooners  got  once  more  near  to  the  field- 
ice,  Roswell  went  on  board  his  own  craft ;  and  all  the  boats, 
which  had  been  towing  in  the  open  passage,  were  run  up 
and  secured.  Gardiner  now  led,  leaving  his  consort  to 
follow  as  closely  in  his  wake  as  she  could  keep. 

Much  greater  difficulty,  and  dangers  indeed,  were  en 
countered  among  the  broken  and  grating  floes,  than  had 
been  expected,  or  previously  met  with.  Notwithstanding 
fenders  were  got  out  on  all  sides,  many  a  rude  shock  was 
sustained,  and  the  copper  suffered  in  several  places.  Once 
or  twice,  Roswell  apprehended  that  the  schooners  would 
be  crushed  by  the  pressure  on  their  sides.  The  hazards 
were  in  some  measure  increased  by  the  bold  manner  in 
which  our  navigators  felt  themselves  called  on  to  push 
ahead ;  for  time  was  very  precious  in  every  sense,  not  only 
on  account  of  the  waning  season,  but  actually  on  account 
of  the  fatigue  undergone  by  men  who  were  compelled  to 
toil  at  the  pumps  one  minute  in  every  four. 

At  the  return  of  day,  now  getting  to  be  later  than  it  had 
been  during  the  early  months  of  their  visit  to  these  seas, 
our  adventurers  found  themselves  in  the  centre  of  vast  fields 
of  floating  ice,  driving  away  from  the  bergs,  which,  influ 
enced  by  tinder-currents,  were  still  floating  north,  while 
the  floes  drove  to  the  southward.  It  was  very  desirable  to 
get  clear  of  all  this  cake-ice,  though  the  grinding  among  it 
was  by  no  means  as  formidable  as  when  the  seas  were  run 
ning  high,  and  the  whole  of  the  frozen  expanse  was  in 


294  THE    SEA     LIONS. 

violent  commotion.  Motion,  however,  soon  became  nearly 
impossible,  except  as  the  schooners  drifted  in  the  midst  of 
the  mass,  which  was  floating  south  at  the  rate  of  about  two 
knots. 

Thus  passed  an  entire  day  and  night.  So  compact  was 
the  ice  around  them,  that  the  mariners  passed  from  one 
vessel  to  the  other  on  it,  with  the  utmost  confidence.  No 
apprehension  was  felt  so  long  as  the  wind  stood  in  its  pre 
sent  quarter,  the  fleet  of  bergs  actually  forming  as  good  a 
lee  as  if  they  had  been  so  much  land.  On  the  morning  of 
the  second  day,  all  this  suddenly  changed.  The  ice  began 
to  open ;  why,  was  matter  of  conjecture,  though  it  was  at 
tributed  to  a  variance  between  the  wind  and  the  currents. 
This,  in  some  measure,  liberated  the  schooners,  and  they 
began  to  move  independently  of  the  floes.  About  noon, 
the  smoke  of  the  volcano  became  once  more  visible ;  and 
before  the  sun  went  down  the  cap  of  the  highest  elevation 
in  the  group  was  seen,  amid  flurries  of  snow. 

Every  one  was  glad  to  see  these  familiar  land-marks, 
dreary  and  remote  from  the  haunts  of  men  as  they  were 
known  to  be ;  for  there  was  a  promise  in  them  of  a  tempo 
rary  termination  of  their  labours.  Incessant  pumping  — 
one  minute  in  four  being  thus  employed  on  board  the  Vine 
yard  craft  —  was  producing  its  customary  effect;  and  the 
men  looked  jaded  and  exhausted.  No  one  who  has  not  stood 
at  a  pump-break  on  board  a  vessel,  can  form  any  notion  of 
the  nature  of  the  toil,  or  of  the  extreme  dislike  with  which 
seamen  regard  it.  The  tread-mill,  as  we  conceive — for  our 
experience  extends  to  the  first,  though  not  to  the  last  of 
these  occupations  —  is  the  nearest  approach  to  the  pain  of 
such  toil,  though  the  convict  does  not  work  for  his  life. 

On  the  morning  of  the  fourth  day,  our  mariners  found 
themselves  in  the  great  bay,  in  clear  water,  about  a  league 
from  the  cove,  and  nearly  dead  to  windward  of  their  port. 
The  helms  were  put  up,  and  the  schooners  were  soon  within 
the  well-known  shelter.  As  they  ran  in,  Roswell  gazed 
around  him,  in  regret,  awe,  and  admiration.  He  could  not 
but  regret  being  compelled  to  lose  so  much  precious  time, 
at  that  particular  season.  Short  as  had  been  his  absence 
from  the  group,  sensible  changes  in  the  aspect  of  things 
had  already  occurred.  Every  sign  of  summer  —  and  they 


THE    SEA    LIONS.  295 

had  ever  been  few  and  meagre — was  now  lost ;  a  chill  and 
dreary  autumn  having  succeeded.  As  a  matter  of  course, 
nothing  was  altered  about  the  dwelling;  the  piles  of  wood, 
and  other  objects  placed  there  by  the  hands  of  man,  re 
maining  just  as  they  had  been  left ;  but  even  these  looked 
less  cheering,  more  unavailable,  than  when  last  seen.  To 
the  surprise  of  all,  not  a  seal  was  visible.  From  some  cause 
unknown  to  the  men,  all  of  these  animals  had  disappeared, 
thereby  defeating  one  of  Daggett's  secret  calculations ;  this 
provident  master  having  determined,  in  his  own  mind,  to 
profit  by  his  accident,  and  seize  the  occasion  to  fill  up. 
Some  said  that  the  creatures  had  gone  north  to  winter ; 
others  asserted  that  they  had  been  alarmed,  and  had  taken 
refuge  on  one  of  the  other  islands;  but  all  agreed  in  saying 
that  they  were  gone. 

It  is  known  that  a  seal  will  occasionally  wander  a  great 
distance  from  what  may  be  considered  his  native  waters; 
but  we  are  not  at  all  aware  that  they  are  to  be  considered 
as  migratory  animals.  The  larger  species  usually  take  a 
wide  range  of  climate  to  dwell  in,  and  even  the  little  fur- 
seal  sometimes  gets  astray,  and  is  found  on  coasts  that  do 
not  usually  come  within  his  haunts.  As  respects  the  animals 
that  so  lately  abounded  on  Sealer's  Land,  we  shall  hazard 
no  theory,  our  business  being  principally  with  facts;  but  a 
conversation  that  took  place  between  the  two  chief  mates 
on  this  occasion  may  possibly  assist  some  inquiring  mind 
in  its  speculations. 

"  Well,  Macy,"  said  Hazard,  pointing  along  the  deserted 
rocks,  "  what  do  you  think  of  that  ?  Not  an  animal  to  be 
seen,  where  there  were  lately  thousands !" 

"  What  do  I  think  of  it?  —  Why,  I  think  they  are  off, 
and  I've  know'd  such  things  to  happen  afore"  —  The 
sealers  of  1819  were  not  very  particular  about  their  Eng 
lish,  even  among  their  officers-—"  Any  man  who  watches 
for  signs  and  symptoms,  may  know  how  to  take  this." 

"  I  should  like  to  hear  it  explained ;  to  me  it  is  quite 
new." 

"  The  seals  are  off,  and  that  is  a  sign  we  should  be  off, 
too.  There's  my  explanation,  and  you  may  make  what 
you  please  of  it.  Natur'  gives  sich  hints,  and  no  prudent 


296  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

seaman  ought  to  overlook  'em.     I  say,  that  when  the  scale 
go,  the  sealers  should  go  likewise." 

"And  you  set  this  down  as  a  hint  from  natur',  as  you 
call  it?" 

"  I  do ;  and  a  useful  hint  it  is.  If  we  was  in  sailing 
trim,  I  }d  ha'nt  the  old  man,  but  I  'd  get  him  off  this  blessed 
night.  Now,  mark  my  words,  Hazard — no  good  will  come 
of  that  nip,  and  of  this  return  into  port  ag'in;  and  of  all 
this  veering  and  hauling  upon  cargo." 

The  other  mate  laughed ;  but  a  call  from  his  command 
ing  officer  put  a  stop  to  the  dialogue.  Hazard  was  wanted 
to  help  secure  the  schooner  of  Daggett  in  the  berth  in 
which  she  was  now  placed.  The  tides  do  not  appear  to 
rise  and  fall  in  very  high  latitudes,  by  any  means,  as  much 
as  it  does  in  about  50°.  In  the  antarctic  sea  they  are  re 
ported  to  be  but  of  medium  elevation  and  force.  This  fact 
our  navigators  had  noted ;  and  Daggett  had,  at  once,  carried 
his  schooner  on  the  only  thing  like  a  beach  that  was  to  be 
found  on  any  part  of  that  wild  coast.  His  craft  was  snug 
within  the  cove,  and  quite  handy  for  discharging  and  taking 
in.  Beach,  in  a  proper  sense,  it  was  not ;  being,  with  a 
very  trifling  exception,  nothing  but  a  shelf  of  rock  that  was 
a  little  inclined,  and  which  admitted  of  a  vessel's  being 
placed  upon  it,  as  on  the  floor  of  a  dock. 

Into  this  berth  Daggett  took  his  schooner,  while  the 
other  vessel  anchored.  There  was  nearly  a  whole  day  be 
fore  them,  and  all  the  men  were  at  once  set  to  work  to  dis 
charge  the  cargo  of  the  injured  vessel.  To  get  rid  of  the 
pumps,  they  would  cheerfully  have  worked  the  twenty-four 
hours  without  intermission.  As  fast  as  the  vessel  was 
lightened,  she  was  hove  further  and  further  on  the  rock, 
until  she  was  got  so  high  as  to  be  perfectly  safe  from  sink 
ing,  or  from  injuring  anything  on  board  her;  when  the 
pumps  were  abandoned.  Before  night  came,  however,  the 
schooner  was  so  secured  by  means  of  shores,  and  purchases 
aloft  that  were  carried  out  to  the  rocks,  as  to  stand  per 
fectly  upright  on  her  keel.  She  was  thus  protected  when 
the  tide  left  her.  At  low  water  it  was  found  that  she  want 
ed  eight  feet  of  being  high  and  dry,  having  already  been 
lightened  four  feet.  A  good  deal  of  cargo  was  still  in,  on 
this  the  first  night  after  her  return. 


THE     SEA     LIONS.  297 

The  crew  of  Daggett's  vessel  carried  their  mattresses 
mshore,  took  possession  of  the  bunks,  lighted  a  fire  in  the 
stove,  and  made  their  preparations  to  get  the  camboose 
ashore  next  day,  and  do  their  cooking  in  the  house,  as  had 
been  practised  previously  to  quitting  the  island.  Roswell, 
and  all  his  people,  remained  on  board  their  own  vessel. 

The  succeeding  day  the  injured  schooner  was  cleared  of 
everything,  even  to  her  spars,  the  lower  masts  and  bowsprit 
excepted.  Two  large  sealing  crews  made  quick  work  with 
so  small  a  craft.  Empty  casks  were  got  under  her,  and  at 
the  top  of  the  tide  she  was  floated  quite  up  to  the  small 
beach  that  was  composed  of  the  debris  of  rock,  already 
mentioned.  As  the  water  left  her,  she  fell  over  a  little,  of 
course;  and  at  half-tide  her  keel  lay  high  and  dry. 

The  prying  eyes  of  all  hands  were  now  busy  looking  out 
for  the  leaks.  As  might  have  been  expected,  none  were 
found  near  the  garboard  streak,  a  fact  that  was  clearly 
enough  proved  by  a  quantity  of  the  water  remaining  in  the 
vessel  after  she  lay,  entirely  bare,  nearly  on  her  bilge. 

"  Her  seams  have  opened  a  few  streaks  below  the  bends,' 
said  Roswell,  as  he  and  Daggett  went  under  the  vessel's 
bottom,  looking  out  for  injuries;  "  and  you  had  better  set 
about  getting  off  the  copper  at  once.  Has  there  been  an 
examination  made  inside?" 

None  had  yet  been  made,  and  our  two  masters  clamber 
ed  up  to  the  main  hatch,  and  got  as  good  a  look  at  the 
state  of  things  in  the  hold  as  could  be  thus  obtained.  So 
tremendous  had  been  the  pressure,  that  three  of  the  deck 
Vams  were  broken.  They  would  have  been  driven  quite 
cii^r  of  their  fastenings,  had  not  the  wall  of  ice  at  each 
end  prevented  the  possibility  of  such  a  thing.  As  it  was, 
the  top-timbers  had  slightly  given  way,  and  the  seams  must 
have  opened  just  below  the  water-line.  When  the  tide 
came  in  again,  the  schooner  righted  of  course ;  and  the 
opportunity  was  taken  to  pump  her  dry.  There  was  then 
no  leak ;  another  proof  that  the  defective  places  must  be 
sought  above  the  present  water-line. 

With  the  knowledge  thus  obtained,  the  copper  was  re 
moved,  and  several  of  the  seams  examined.  The  condition 
of  the  pitch  and  oakum  pointed  out  the  precise  spots  that 
Deeded  attention,  and  the  caulking-irons  were  immediately 


298  THE     SEA     LIONS. 

set  at  work.  In  about  a  week  the  job  was  completed,  aar 
was  fancied,  the  copper  re-placed,  and  the  schooner  was 
got  afloat  again.  Great  was  the  anxiety  to  learn  the  effect 
of  what  had  been  done,  and  quite  as  great  the  disappoint 
ment,  when  it  was  found  that  there  was  still  a  serious  leak 
that  admitted  too  much  water  to  think  of  going  to  sea  until 
it  was  stopped.  A  little  head-work,  however,  and  that  or* 
the  part  of  Roswell,  speedily  gave  a  direction  to  the  search 
that  was  immediately  set  on  foot. 

"  This  leak  is  not  as  low  down  as  the  vessel's  bilge,"  he 
said  ;  "  for  the  water  did  not  ran  out  of  her,  nor  into  her, 
until  we  got  her  afloat.  It  is  somewhere,  then,  between 
her  light-water  load-line  and  her  bilge.  Now  we  have  had 
all  the  copper  off,  and  the  seams  examined  in  the  wake  of 
this  section  of  the  vessel's  bottom,  from  the  fore-chains  to* 
the  main  ;  and,  in  my  judgment,  it  will  be  found  that  some" 
thing  is  wrong  about  her  stem,  or  her  stern-post.  Perhaps 
one  of  her  wood-ends  has  started.  Such  a  thing  might  very 
well  have  happened  under  so  close  a  squeeze." 

"•In  which  case  we  shall  have  to  lay  the  craft  ashore 
again,  and  go  to  work  anew,"  answered  Daggett.  "  I  see 
how  it  is;  you  do  not  like  the  delay,  and  are  thinking  of 
Deacon  Pratt  and  Oyster  Pond.  I  do  not  blame  you,  Gar'- 
ner ;  and  shall  never  whisper  a  syllable  ag'in  you,  or  your 
people,  if  you  sail  for  home  this  very  a'ternoon ;  leaving 
me  and  mine  to  look  out  for  ourselves.  You  've  stood  by 
us  nobly  thus  far,  and  I  am  too  thankful  for  what  you  have 
done  already,  to  ask  for  more." 

Was  Daggett  sincere  in  these  professions?  To  a  certain? 
point  he  was;  while  he  was  only  artful  on  others.  He 
wished  to  appear  just  and  magnanimous  -r  while,  in  secret, 
it  was  his  aim  to  work  on  the  better  feelings,  as  well  as  ors 
the  pride  of  Gardiner,  and  thus  secure  his  services  in  getting 
his  own  schooner  ready,  as  well  as  keep  him  in  sight  until 
a  certain  key  had  been  examined,  in  the  proceeds  of  which 
he  conceived  he  had  a  share,  as  well  as  in  those  of  Sealer's 
Land.  Strange  as  it  may  seem,  even  in  the  strait  in  which 
he  was  now  placed,  with  so  desperate  a  prospect  of  ever 
getting  his  vessel  home  again,  this  man  clung  like  a  leech 
to  the  remotest  chance  of  obtaining  property.  There  is  9 
bull-dog  tenacity  on  this  subject,  among  a  certain  portion 


THE    SEA    LIONS. 

of  the  great  American  family — the  god-like  Anglo-Saxon — 
that  certainly  leads  to  great  results  in  one  respect ;  but 
which  it  is  often  painfui  to  regard,  and  never  agreeable  to 
any  but  themselves,  to  be  subject  to.  Of  this  school  was 
Daggett,  whom  no  dangers,  no  toil,  no  thoughts  of  a  future, 
could  divert  from  a  purpose  that  was  coloured  by  gold.  We 
do  not  mean  to  say  that  other  nations  are  not  just  as  mer 
cenary  ;  many  are  more  so ;  those,  in  particular,  that  have 
long  been  corrupted  by  vicious  governments.  You  may 
buy  half  a  dozen  Frenchmen,  for  instance,  more  easily 
than  one  Yankee;  but  let  the  last  actually  get  his  teeth 
into  a  dollar,  and  the  muzzle  of  the  ox  fares  worse  in  the 
jaws  of  the  bull-dog. 

Roswell  was  deeply  reluctant  to  protract  his  stay  in  the 
group ;  but  professional  pride  would  have  prevented  him 
from  deserting  a  consort  under  such  circumstances,  had 
not  a  better  feeling  inclined  him  to  remain  and  assist  Dag 
gett.  It  is  true  the  last  had,  in  a  manner,  thrust  himself 
on  him,  and  the  connection  had  been  strangely  continued 
down  to  that  moment;  but  this  he  viewed  as  a  dispensation 
of  Providence,  to  which  he  was  bound  to  submit.  The 
result  was  a  declaration  of  a  design  to  stand  by  his  com 
panion  as  long  as  there  was  any  hope  of  getting  the  injured 
craft  home. 

This  decision  pointed  at  once  to  the  delay  of  another 
week.  No  time  was  lost  in  vain  regrets,  however ;  but  all 
hands  went  to  work  to  get  the  schooner  into  shallow  water 
again,  and  to  look  further  for  the  principal  leak.  Accurate 
trimming  and  pumping  showed  that  a  good  deal  of  the 
water  was  already  stopped  out ;  but  too  much  still  entered 
lo  render  it  prudent  to  think  of  sailing  until  the  injury  was 
repaired.  This  time  the  schooner  was  not  suffered  to  lie 
on  her  bilge  at  all.  She  was  taken  into  water  just  deep 
enough  to  permit  her  to  stand  upright,  sustained  by  shores, 
while  the  tide  left  two  or  three  streaks  dry  forward ;  it  be 
ing  the  intention  to  wind  her,  should  the  examination  for 
ward  not  be  successful. 

On  stripping  off  the  copper,  it  was  found  that  a  wood- 
end  had  indeed  started,  the  inner  edge  of  the  plank  having 
got  as  far  from  its  bed  as  where  the  outer  had  been  origin 
ally  placed.  This  opened  a  crack  through  which  a  small 
26 


300  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

stream  of  water  must  constantly  pour,  each  hour  rendering 
the  leak  more  dangerous  by  loosening  the  oakum,  and 
raising  the  piank  from  its  curvature.  Once  discovered, 
however,  nothing  was  easier  than  to  repair  the  damage.  It 
remained  merely  to  butt-bolt  anew  the  wood-end,  drive  a 
few  spikes,  cork,  and  replace  the  copper.  Roswell,  who 
was  getting  each  moment  more  and  more  impatient  to  sail, 
was  much  vexed  at  a  delay  that  really  seemed  unavoidable, 
as  it  arose  from  the  particular  position  of  the  leak.  Placed 
as  it  was,  in  a  manner,  between  wind  and  water,  it  was  not 
possible  to  work  at  it  more  than  an  hour  each  tide ;  and  the 
staging  permitted  but  two  hands  to  be  busy  at  the  same 
time.  As  a  consequence  of  these  embarrassments,  no  less 
than  six  tides  came  in  and  went  out,  before  the  stem  was 
pronounced  tight  again.  The  schooner  was  then  pumped 
out,  and  the  vessel  was  once  more  taken  into  deep  water. 
This  time  it  was  found  that  the  patience  and  industry  of 
our  sealers  were  rewarded  with  success ;  no  leak  of  any 
account  existing. 

"  She 's  as  tight  as  a  bottle  with  a  sealed  cork,  Gar'ner," 
cried  Daggett,  a  few  hours  after  his  craft  was  at  her  an 
chor,  meeting  his  brother-master  at  his  own  gangway,  and 
shaking  hands  with  him  cordially.  "  I  owe  much  of  this 
to  you,  as  all  on  the  Vineyard  shall  know,  if  we  ever  get 
home  ag'in." 

"  I  am  rejoiced  that  it  turns  out  so,  Captain  Daggett," 
was  Roswell's  reply ;  "  for  to  own  the  truth  to  you,  the 
fortnight  we  have  lost,  or  shall  lose,  before  we  get  you 
stowed  and  ready  to  sail  again,  has  made  a  great  change 
in  our  weather.  The  days  are  shortening  with  frightful 
rapidity,  and  the  great  bay  was  actually  covered  with  a 
skim  of  ice  this  very  morning.  The  wind  has  sent  in  a  sea 
that  has  broke  it  up ;  but  look  about  you,  in  the  cove  here — 
a  boy  might  walk  on  that  ice  near  the  rocks." 

"  There  'II  be  none  of  it  left  by  night,  and  the  two  crews 
will  fill  me  up  in  twenty-four  hours.  Keep  a  good  heart, 
Gar'ner ;  I  '11  take  you  clear  of  the  bergs  in  the  course  of 
Ihe  week." 

"  I  have  less  fear  of  the  bergs  now,  than  of  the  new  ice 
and  the  floes.  The  islands  must  have  got  pretty  well  to 
the  northward  by  this  time;  but  each  night  gets  colder, 


THE    SEA    LIONS,  301 

and  the  fields  seem  to  be  setting  back  towards  the  group, 
instead  of  away  from  it." 

Daggett  cheered  his  companion  by  a  good  deal  of  confi 
dent  talk ;  but  Roswell  was  heartily  rejoiced  when,  at  the 
end  of  four-and-twenty  hours  more,  the  Vineyard  craft  was 
pronounced  entirely  ready.  It  was  near  the  close  of  the 
day,  and  Gardiner  was  for  sailing,  or  moving  at  once  ;  but 
Daggett  offered  several  very  reasonable  objections.  In  the 
first  place,  there  was  no  windj  and  Roswell's  proposition 
to  tow  the  schooners  out  into  the  middle  of  the  bay,  was 
met  by  the  objection  that  the  people  had  been  hard  at  work 
for  several  days,  and  that  they  needed  some  rest.  All  that 
could  be  gained  by  moving  the  schooners  then,  was  to  get 
them  outside  of  the  skim  of  ice  that  now  regularly  formed 
every  still  night  near  the  land,  but  which  was  as  regularly 
broken  and  dispersed  by  the  waves,  as  soon  as  the  wind 
returned.  Roswell,  however,  did  not  like  the  appearances 
of  things;  and  he  determined  to  take  his  own  craft  outside, 
let  Daggett  do  as  he  might.  After  discussing  the  matter 
in  vain,  therefore,  and  finding  that  the  people  of  the  other 
schooner  had  eaten  their  suppers  and  turned  in,  he  called 
all  hands,  and  made  a  short  address  to  his  own  crew, 
leaving  it  to  their  discretion  whether  to  man  the  boats  or 
not.  As  Roswell  had  pointed  out  the  perfect  absence  of 
wind,  the  smoothness  of  the  water,  and  the  appearances  of 
a  severe  frost,  or  cold,  for  frost  there  was  now,  almost  at 
mid-day,  the  men  came  reluctantly  over  to  his  view  of  the 
matter,  and  consented  to  work  instead  of  sleeping.  The 
toil,  however,  could  be  much  lessened,  by  dividing  the 
srew  into  the  customary  watches.  All  that  Roswell  aimed 
at  was  to  get  his  schooner  about  a  league  from  the  cove, 
which  would  be  taking  her  without  a  line  drawn  from  cape 
to  cape,  the  greatest  danger  of  new  ice  being  within  the 
curvature  of  the  crescent.  This  he  thought  might  easily 
be  done  in  the  course  of  a  few  hours ;  and,  should  there 
come  any  wind,  much  sooner.  On  explaining  this  to  the 
crew,  the  men  were  satisfied. 

Roswell  Gardiner  felt  as  if  a  load  were  taken  off  his 
spirits,  when  his  schooner  was  clear  of  the  ground,  and  his 
mainsail  was  hoisted.  A  boat  was  got  ahead,  and  the  craft 
was  slowly  towed  out  of  the  cove,  the  canvass  doing  neither 


302  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

good  nor  harm.  As  the  vessel  passed  that  of  Daggett  the 
last  was  on  deck ;  the  only  person  visible  in  the  Vineyard 
craft.  He  wished  his  brother-master  a  good  night,  pro 
mising  to  be  out  as  soon  as  there  was  any  light  next 
morning. 

It  would  not  be  easy  to  imagine  a  more  dreary  scene 
than  that  in  which  Deacon  Pratt's  schooner  moved  out  into 
the  waters  that  separated  the  different  islands  of  this  remote 
and  sterile  group.  Roswell  could  just  discern  the  frowning 
mass  of  the  rocks  that  crowned  the  centre  of  Sealer's  Land  ; 
and  that  was  soon  lost  in  the  increasing  obscurity.  The 
cold  was  getting  to  be  severe,  and  the  men  soon  complained 
that  ice  was  forming  on  the  blades  of  their  oars.  Then  it 
was  that  a  thought  occurred  to  our  young  mariner,  which 
had  hitherto  escaped  him.  Of  what  use  would  it  be  for  his 
vessel  to  be  beyond  the  ice,  if  that  of  Daggett  should  be 
shut  in  the  succeeding  day?  So  sensible  did  he  become 
to  the  importance  of  this  idea,  that  he  called  in  his  boat, 
and  pulled  back  into  the  cove,  in  order  to  make  one  more 
effort  to  persuade  Daggett  to  follow  him  out. 

Gardiner  found  all  of  the  Vineyarders  turned  in,  even  to 
their  officers.  The  fatigue  they  had  lately  undergone, 
united  to  the  cold,  rendered  the  berths  very  agreeable;  and 
even  Daggett  begged  his  visiter  would  excuse  him  for  not 
rising  to  receive  his  guest.  Argument  with  a  man  thus 
circumstanced  and  so  disposed,  was  absolutely  useless. 
After  remaining  a  short  time  with  Daggett,  Roswell  re 
turned  to  his  own  schooner.  As  he  pulled  back,  he  ascer 
tained  that  ice  was  fast  making ;  and  the  boat  actually  cut 
its  way  through  a  thin  skim,  ere  it  reached  the  vessel. 

Our  hero  was  now  greatly  concerned  lest  he  should  be 
frozen  in  himself,  ere  he  could  get  jnto  the  more  open 
water  of  the  bay.  Fortunately  a  light  air  sprung  up  from 
the  northward,  and  trimming  his  sails,  Gardiner  succeeded 
in  carrying  his  craft  to  a  point  where  the  undulations  of 
the  ground-swell  gave  the  assurance  of  her  being  outside 
the  segment  of  the  crescent.  Then  he  brailed  his  foresail, 
hauled  the  jib-sheet  over,  lowered  his  gaff,  and  put  his  helm 
hard  down.  After  this,  all  the  men  were  permitted  to  seek 
their  berths ;  the  officers  looking  out  for  the  craft  in  turns. 

It  wanted  about  an  hour  of  day,  when  the  second  mate 


THE    SEA    LIONS.  303 

gave  Roswell  a  call,  according  to  orders.  The  young 
master  found  no  wind,  but  an  intensely  cold  morning,  on 
going  on  deck.  Ice  had  formed  on  every  part  of  the  rig 
ging  and  sides  of  the  schooner  where  water  had  touched 
them ;  though  the  stillness  of  the  night,  by  preventing  the 
spray  from  flying,  was  much  in  favour  of  the  navigators  in 
this  respect.  On  thrusting  a  boat-hook  down,  Roswell 
ascertained  that  the  bay  around  him  had  a  skim  *f  ice 
nearly  an  inch  in  thickness.  This  caused  him  great  unea 
siness  ;  and  he  waited  with  the  greatest  anxiety  for  the  re 
turn  of  light,  in  order  to  observe  the  condition  of  Daggett. 

Sure  enough,  when  the  day  came  out  distinctly,  it  was 
seen  that  ice  of  sufficient  thickness  to  bear  men  on  it, 
covered  the  entire  surface  within  the  crescent.  Daggett 
and  his  people  were  already  at  work  on  it,  using  the  saw. 
They  must  have  taken  the  alarm  before  the  return  of  day , 
for  the  schooner  was  not  only  free  from  the  ground,  but 
had  been  brought  fully  a  cable's  length  without  the  cove. 
Gardiner  watched  the  movements  of  Daggett  and  his  crew 
with  a  glass  for  a  short  time,  when  he  ordered  all  hands 
called.  The  cook  was  already  in  the  galley,  and  a  warm 
breakfast  was  soon  prepared.  After  eating  this,  the  two 
whale-boats  were  lowered,  and  Roswell  and  Hazard  both 
rowed  as  far  as  the  ice  would  permit  them,  when  they 
walked  the  rest  of  the  way  to  the  imprisoned  craft,  taking 
with  them  most  of  their  hands,  together  with  the  saw. 

It  was  perhaps  fortunate  for  Daggett  that  it  soon  began 
to  blow  fresh  from  the  northward,  sending  into  the  bay  a 
considerable  sea,  which  soon  broke  up  the  ice,  and  enabled 
the  Vineyard  craft  to  force  her  way  through  the  fragments, 
and  join  her  consort  about  noon. 

Glad  enough  was  Roswell  to  regain  his  own  vessel ;  and 
he  made  sail  on  a  wind,  determined  to  beat  out  of  the  nar 
row  waters  at  every  hazard,  the  experience  of  that  night 
having  told  him  that  they  had  remained  in  the  cove  too 
long.  Daggett  followed  willingly,  but  not  like  a  man  who 
had  escaped  by  the  skin  of  his  teeth,  from  wintering  near 
the  antarctic  circle 
26* 


304  THE   SEA   LIONS. 


CHAPTEE  XXII. 

*  Beside  the  Moldau's  rushing  stream, 
With  the  wan  moon  overhead, 
There  stood,  as  in  an  awful  dream, 
The  army  of  the  dead." 


MOST  of  our  readers  will  understand  what  was  meant  by 
Mary  Pratt's  "  inclination  of  the  earth's  axis  to  the  plane 
of  its  orbit;"  but  as  there  may  be  a  few  who  do  not,  and 
as  the  consequences  of  this  great  physical  fact  are  mate 
rially  connected  with  the  succeeding  events  of  the  narra 
tive,  we  propose  to  give  such  a  homely  explanation  of  the 
phenomenon  as  we  humbly  trust  will  render  it  clear  to  the 
most  clouded  mind.  The  orbit  of  the  earth  is  the  path 
which  it  follows  in  space  in  its  annual  revolution  around 
the  sun.  To  a  planet  there  is  no  up  or  down,  except  as 
ascent  and  descent  are  estimated  from  and  towards  itself. 
In  all  other  respects  it  floats  in  vacuum,  or  what  is  so 
nearly  so  as  to  be  thus  termed.  Now,  let  the  uninstructed 
reader  imagine  a  large  circular  table,  with  a  light  on  its 
surface,  and  near  to  its  centre.  The  light  shall  represent 
the  sun,  the  outer  edge  of  the  circle  of  the  table  the  earth's 
orbit,  and  its  surface  the  plane  of  that  orbit.  In  nature 
there  is  no  such  thing  as  a  plane  at  all,  the  space  within 
the  orbit  being  vacant  ;  but  the  surface  of  the  table  gives  a 
distinct  notion  of  the  general  position  of  the  earth  as  it 
travels  round  the  sun.  It  is  scarcely  necessary  to  say  that 
the  axis  of  the  earth  is  an  imaginary  line  drawn  through 
the  planet,  from  one  pole  to  the  other;  the  name  being 
derived  from  the  supposition  that  our  daily  revolution  is 
made  on  this  axis. 

Now,  the  first  thing  that  the  student  is  to  fix  in  his  mind, 
in  order  to  comprehend  the  phenomenon  of  the  seasons,  is 
the  leading  fact  that  the  earth  does  not  change  its  attitude 
in  space,  if  we  may  so  express  it,  when  it  changes  its  posi- 


THE    SEA    LIONS.  305 

tion.  If  the  axis  were  perpendicular  to  the  plane  of  the 
orbit,  this  circumstance  would  not  affect  the  temperature, 
as  the  simplest  experiment  will  show.  Putting  the  equator 
of  a  globe  on  the  outer  edge  of  the  table,  and  holding  it 
perfectly  upright,  causing  it  to  turn  on  its  axis  as  it  passes 
round  the  circle,  it  would  be  found  that  the  light  from  the 
centre  of  the  table  would  illumine  just  one  half  of  the  globe, 
at  all  times  and  in  all  positions,  cutting  the  two  poles.  Did 
this  movement  correspond  with  that  of  nature,  the  days  and 
nights  would  be  always  of  the  same  length,  and  there  would 
be  no  changes  of  the  seasons,  the  warmest  weather  being 
nearest  to  the  equator,  and  the  cold  increasing  as  the  poles 
were  approached.  No  where,  however,  would  the  cold  be 
so  intense  as  it  now  is,  nor  would  the  heat  be  as  great  as  at 
present,  except  at  or  quite  near  to  the  equator.  The  first 
fact  would  be  owing  to  the  regular  return  of  the  sun,  once 
in  twenty-four  hours;  the  last  to  the  oblique  manner  in 
which  its  rays  struck  this  orb,  in  all  places  but  near  its 
centre. 

But  the  globe  ought  not  to  be  made  to  move  around  the 
table  with  its  axis  perpendicular  to  its  surface,  or  to  the 
"  plane  of  the  earth's  orbit."  In  point  of  fact,  the  earth  is 
inclined  to  this  plane,  and  the  globe  should  be  placed  at  a 
corresponding  inclination.  Let  the  globe  be  brought  to 
the  edge  of  the  table,  at  its  south  side,  and  with  its  upper 
or  north  pole  inclining  to  the  sun,  and  then  commence  the 
circuit,  taking  care  always  to  keep  this  north  pole  of  the 
globe  pointing  in  the  same  direction,  or  to  keep  the  globe 
itself  in  what  we  have  termed  a  fixed  attitude.  As  one 
half  of  the  globe  must  always  be  in  light,  and  the  other 
half  in  darkness,  this  inclination  from  the  perpendicular 
will  bring  the  circle  of  light  some  distance  beyond  the 
north  pole,  when  the  globe  is  due-south  from  the  light,  and 
will  leave  an  equal  space  around  the  opposite  pole  without 
any  light  at  all,  or  any  light  directly  received.  Now  it  if 
that  what  we  have  termed  the  fixed  attitude  of  the  globa 
begins  to  tell.  If  the  north  pole  inclined  towards  the  orbit 
facing  the  rim  of  the  table,  the  light  would  still  cut  the 
poles,  the  days  and  nights  would  still  be  equal,  and  there 
would  be  no  changes  in  the  seasons,  though  there  would 
be  a  rival  revolution  of  the  globe,  by  causing  it  to  turn  once 


306 


THE    SEA    LIONS. 


a  year,  shifting  the  poles  end  for  end.  The  inclination  be 
ing  to  the  surface  of  the  table,  or  to  the  plane  of  the  orbit, 
the  phenomena  that  are  known  to  exist  are  a  consequence 
Thus  it  is,  that  the  change  in  the  seasons  is  as  much  owing 
to  the  fixed  attitude  of  the  earth  in  space,  as  we  have 
chosen  to  term  its  polar  directions,  as  to  the  inclination  of 
its  axis.  Neither  would  produce  the  phenomena  without 
the  assistance  of  the  other,  as  our  experiment  with  the 
table  will  show. 

Place,  then,  the  globe  at  the  south  side  of  the  rim  of  the 
table,  with  its  axis  inclining  towards  its  surface,  and  its 
poles  always  pointing  in  the  same  general  direction,  not 
following  the  circuit  of  the  orbit,  and  set  it  in  motion  to 
wards  the  east,  revolving  rapidly  on  its  axis  as  it  moves. 
While  directly  south  of  the  light,  it  would  be  found  that 
the  north  pole  would  be  illuminated,  while  no  revolution 
on  the  axis  would  bring  the  south  pole  within  the  circle  of 
the  light.  This  is  when  a  line  drawn  from  the  axis  of  the 
globe  would  cut  the  lamp,  were  the  inclination  brought  as 
low  as  the  surface  of  the  table.  Next  set  the  globe  in  mo 
tion,  following  the  rim  of  the  table,  and  proceeding  to  the 
east  or  right  hand,  keeping  its  axis  always  looking  in  the 
same  general  direction,  or  in  an  attitude  that  would  be 
parallel  to  a  north  and  south  line  drawn  through  the  sun, 
were  the  inclination  as  low  as  the  surface  of  the  table. 
This  movement  would  be,  in  one  sense,  sideways,  the  circle 
of  light  gradually  lessening  around  the  north  pole,  and  ex 
tending  towards  the  south,  as  the  globe  proceeded  east  and 
north,  diminishing  the  length  of  the  days  in  the  northern 
hemisphere,  and  increasing  them  in  the  southern.  When 
at  east,  the  most  direct  rays  of  the  light  would  fall  on  the 
equator,  and  the  light  would  cut  the  two  poles,  rendering 
the  days  and  nights  equal.  As  the  globe  moved  north,  the 
circle  of  light  would  be  found  to  increase  around  the  south 
pole,  while  none  at  all  touched  the  north.  When  on  the 
north  side  of  the  table,  the  northern  pole  of  the  globe  would 
incline  so  far  from  the  sun  as  to  leave  a  space  around  it  in 
shadow  that  would  be  of  precisely  the  same  size  as  had 
been  the  space  of  light  when  it  was  placed  on  the  opposite 
side  of  the  table.  Going  round  the  circle  west,  the  same 
Dhenomena  would  be  seen,  until  coming  directly  south  of 


THE    SEA    LIONS,  307 

the  lamp,  the  north  pole  would  again  come  into  light  alto* 
gether,  and  the  south  equally  into  shadow. 

Owing  to  this  very  simple  but  very  wonderful  provision 
of  divine  power  and  wisdom,  this  earth  enjoys  the  relief  of 
the  changes  in  the  seasons,  as  well  as  the  variations  in  the 
length  of  the  days.  For  one  half  of  the  year,  or  from 
equinox  to  equinox,  from  the  time  when  the  globe  is  at  a 
due-west  point  of  the  table  until  it  reaches  the  east,  the 
north  pole  would  always  receive  the  light,  in  a  circle  around 
it,  that  would  gradually  increase  and  diminish ;  and  for  the 
other  half,  the  same  would  be  true  of  the  other  hemisphere. 
Of  course  there  is  a  precise  point  on  the  earth  where  this 
polar  illumination  ceases.  The  shape  of  the  illuminated 
part  is  circular ;  and  placing  the  point  of  a  pencil  on  the 
globe  at  the  extremest  spot  on  the  circle,  holding  it  there 
while  the  globe  is  turned  on  its  axis,  the  lines  made  would 
just  include  the  portions  of  the  earth  around  the  globe  that 
thus  receives  the  rays  of  the  sun  at  midsummer.  These 
lines  compose  what  are  termed  the  arctic  and  antarctic 
circles,  with  the  last  of  which  our  legend  has  now  a  most 
serious  connection.  After  all,  we  are  by  no  means  certain 
that  we  have  made  our  meaning  as  obvious  as  we  could  wish, 
it  being  very  difficult  to  explain  phenomena  of  this  nature 
clearly,  without  actually  experimenting. 

It  is  usual  to  say  that  there  are  six  months  day  and  six 
months  night  in  the  polar  basins.  This  is  true,  literally, 
at  the  poles  only  ;  but,  approximatively,  it  is  true  as  a  whole. 
We  apprehend  that  few  persons — none,  perhaps,  but  those 
who  are  in  habits  of  study  —  form  correct  notions  of  the 
extent  of  what  may  be  termed  the  icy  seas.  As  the  polar 
circles  are  in  23°  28",  a  line  drawn  through  the  south  pole, 
for  instance,  commencing  on  one  side  of  the  earth  at  the 
antarctic  circle,  and  extending  to  the  other,  would  traverse 
a  distance  materially  exceeding  that  between  New  York 
and  Lisbon.  This  would  make  those  frozen  regions  cover 
a  portion  of  this  globe  that  is  almost  as  large  as  the  whole 
of  the  Atlantic  Ocean,  as  far  south  as  the  equator.  Any 
one  can  imagine  what  must  be  the  influence  of  frost  over 
so  vast  a  surface,  in  reproducing  itself,  since  the  presence 
of  ice-bergs  is  thought  to  affect  >ur  climate,  when  many 
of  them  drift  far  south  in  summer.  As  power  produces 


308  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

power,  riches  wealth,  so  does  cold  produce  cold.  Fill, 
then,  in  a  certain  degree,  a  space  as  large  as  the  North 
Atlantic  Ocean  with  ice  in  all  its  varieties,  fixed,  mountain 
and  field,  berg  and  floe,  and  one  may  get  a  tolerably  accu 
rate  notion  of  the  severity  of  its  winters,  when  the  sun  is 
scarce  seen  above  the  horizon  at  all,  and  then  only  to  shed 
its  rays  so  obliquely  as  to  be  little  better  than  a  chill-look 
ing  orb  of  light,  placed  in  the  heavens  simply  to  divide  the 
day  from  the  night. 

This,  then,  was  the  region  that  Roswell  Gardiner  was  so 
very  anxious  to  leave;  the  winter  he  so  much  dreaded. 
Mary  Pratt  was  before  him,  to  say  nothing  of  his  duty  to 
the  deacon ;  while  behind  him  was  the  vast  polar  ocean 
just  described,  about  to  be  veiled  in  the  freezing  obscurity 
of  its  long  and  gloomy  twilight,  if  not  of  absolute  night. 
No  wonder,  therefore,  that  when  he  trimmed  his  sails  that 
evening,  to  beat  out  of  the  great  bay,  that  it  was  done  with 
the  earnestness  with  which  we  all  perform  duties  of  the 
highest  import,  when  they  are  known  to  affect  our  well- 
being,  visibly  and  directly. 

"  Keep  her  a  good  full,  Mr.  Hazard,"  said  Roswell,  as 
he  was  leaving  the  deck,  to  take  the  first  sleep  in  which  he 
had  indulged  for  four-and-twenty  hours;  "and  let  her  go 
through  the  water.  We  are  behind  our  time,  and  must 
keep  in  motion.  Give  me  a  call  if  anything  like  ice  ap 
pears  in  a  serious  way." 

Hazard  '  ay-ay'd'  this  order,  as  usual,  buttoned  his  pee- 
jacket  tighter  than  ever,  and  saw  his  young  superior — the 
transcendental  delicacy  of  the  day  is  causing  the  difference 
in  rank  to  be  termed  "  senior  and  junior" — but  Hazard  saw 
his  superior  go  below,  with  a  feeling  allied  to  envy,  so 
heavy  were  his  eye-lids  with  the  want  of  rest.  Stimson 
was  in  the  first-mate's  watch,  and  the  latter  approached 
ihat  old  sea-dog  with  a  wish  to  keep  himself  awake  by  con 
versing. 

"  You  seem  as  wide  awake,  king  Stephen,"  the  mate 
remarked,  "  as  if  you  never  felt  drowsy !" 

"  This  is  not  a  part  of  the  world  for  hammocks  and 
berths,  Mr.  Hazard,"  was  the  reply.  "  I  can  get  along, 
and  must  get  along,  with  a  quarter  part  of  the  sleep  in 
these  seas  as  would  sarve  me  in  a  low  latitude." 


THE     SEA     LIONS.  309 

"And  I  feel  as  if  I  wanted  all  I  can  get.  Them  fellows 
look  up  well  into  our  wake,  Stephen." 

11  They  do  indeed,  sir,  and  they  ought  to  do  it;  for  we 
hare  been  longer  than  is  for  our  good,  in  their'n." 

"  Well,  now  we  have  got  a  fresh  start,  I  hope  we  may 
make  a  clear  run  of  it.  I  saw  no  ice  worth  speaking  of, 
to  the  nor'ard  here,  before  we  made  sail." 

"  Because  you  see'd  none,  Mr.  Hazard,  is  no  proof  there 
is  none.  Floe-ice  can't  be  seen  at  any  great  distance, 
though  its  blink  may.  But,  it  seems  to  me,  it's  all  blink 
in  these  here  seas !" 

"There  you're  quite  right,  Stephen;  for  turn  which 
way  you  will,  the  horizon  has  a  show  of  that  sort " 

"  Starboard" — called  out  the  look-out  forward — "  keep 
her  away — keep  her  away — there  is  ice  ahead." 

"Ice  in  here!"  exclaimed  Hazard,  springing  forward  — 
"  That  is  more  than  we  bargained  for !  Where  away  is 
your  ice,  Smith?" 

"Off  here,  sir,  on  our  weather  bow  —  and  a  mortal  big 
field  of  it  —  jist  sich  a  chap  as  nipp'd  the  Vineyard  Lion, 
when  she  first  came  in  to  join  us.  Sich  a  fellow  as  that 
would  take  the  sap  out  of  our  bends,  as  a  squeezer  takes 
the  juice  from  a  lemon  !" 

Smith  was  a  carpenter  by  trade,  which  was  probably  the 
reason  why  he  introduced  this  figure.  Hazard  saw  the  ice 
with  regret;  for  he  had  hoped  to  work  the  schooner  fairly 
out  to  sea  in  his  watch ;  but  the  field  was  getting  down 
through  the  passage  in  a  way  that  threatened  to  cut  off  the 
exit  of  the  two  schooners  from  the  bay.  Daggett  kept 
close  in  his  wake,  a  proof  that  this  experienced  navigator 
in  such  waters  saw  no  means  to  turn  farther  to  windward. 
As  the  wind  was  now  abeam,  both  vessels  drove  rapidly 
ahead;  and  in  half  an  hour  the  northern  point  of  the  land 
they  had  so  lately  left  came  into  view  close  aboard  of  them. 
Just  then  the  moon  rose,  and  objects  became  more  clearly 
visible. 

Hazard  hailed  the  Vineyard  Lion,  and  demanded  what 
was  to  be  done.  It  was  possible,  by  hauling  close  on  a 
wind,  to  pass  the  cape  a  short  distance  to  windward  of  it, 
and  seemingly  thus  clear  the  floe.  Unless  this  were  done, 
both  vessels  would  be  compelled  to  ware,  and  run  for  the 


310 


THE    SEA    LIONS. 


southern  passage,  which  would  carry  them  many  miles  to 
leeward,  and  might  place  them  a  long  distance  on  the 
wrong  side  of  the  group. 

"  Is  Captain  Gar'ner  on  deck  ?"  asked  Daggett,  who  had 
now  drawn  close  up  on  the  lee-quarter  of  his  consort, 
Hazard  having  brailed  his  foresail  and  laid  his  topsail  sharp 
aback,  to  enable  him  to  do  so  —  "  If  he  isn't,  I'd  advise 
you  to  give  him  a  call  at  once." 

This  was  done  immediately ;  and  while  it  was  doing, 
the  Vineyard  Lion  swept  past  the  Oyster  Pond  schooner. 
Roswell  announced  his  presence  on  deck  just  as  the  other 
vessel  cleared  his  bows. 

"  There 's  no  time  to  consult,  Gar'ner,"  answered  Dag 
gett.  "  There 's  our  road  before  us.  Go  through  it  we 
must,  or  stay  where  we  are  until  that  field-ice  gives  us  a 
jam  down  yonder  in  the  crescent.  I  will  lead,  and  you 
can  follow  as  soon  as  your  eyes  are  open." 

One  glance  let  Roswell  into  the  secret  of  his  situation. 
He  liked  it  little,  but  he  did  not  hesitate. 

"  Fill  the  topsail,  and  haul  aft  the  foresheet,"  were  the 
quiet  orders  that  proclaimed  what  he  intended  to  do. 

Both  vessels  stood  on.  By  some  secret  process,  every 
man  on  board  the  two  craft  became  aware  of  what  was 
going  on,  and  appeared  on  deck.  All  hands  were  not 
called,  nor  was  there  any  particular  noise  to  attract  atten 
tion  ;  but  the  word  had  been  whispered  below  that  there 
was  a  great  risk  to  run.  A  risk  it  was,  of  a  verity !  It  was 
necessary  to  stand  close  along  that  iron-bound  coast  where 
the  seals  had  so  lately  resorted,  for  a  distance  of  several 
miles.  The  wind  would  not  admit  of  the  schooners  steer 
ing  much  more  than  a  cable's  length  from  the  rocks  for 
quite  a  league;  after  which  the  shore  trended  to  the  south 
ward,  and  a  little  sea-room  would  be  gained.  But  on  those 
rocks  the  waves  were  then  beating  heavily,  and  their  bel- 
lovvings  as  they  rolled  into  the  cavities  were  at  almost  all 
times  terrific.  There  was  some  relief,  however,  in  the 
knowledge  obtained  of  the  shore,  by  having  frequently 
passed  up  and  down  it  in  the  boats.  It  was  known  that 
the  water  was  deep  close  to  the  visible  rocks,  and  that 
there  was  no  danger  as  long  as  a  vessel  could  keep  off 
them. 


THE     SEA     LIONS.  311 

No  one  spoke.  Every  eye  was  strained  to  discern  objects 
ahead,  or  was  looking  astern  to  trace  the  expected  collision 
between  the  floe-ice  and  the  low  promontory  of  the  cape. 
The  ear  soon  gave  notice  that  this  meeting  had  already 
taken  place;  for  the  frightful  sound  that  attended  the 
cracking  and  rending  of  the  field  might  have  been  heard 
fully  a  league.  Now  it  was  that  each  schooner  did  her 
best!  Yards  were  braced  up,  sheets  flattened,  and  the 
helm  tended.  The  close  proximity  of  the  rocks  on  the  one 
side,  and  the  secret  presentiment  of  there  being  more  field- 
ice  on  the  other,  kept  every  one  wide  awake.  The  two 
masters,  in  particular,  were  all  eyes  and  ears.  It  was 
getting  to  be  very  cold ;  and  the  sort  of  shelter  aloft  that 
goes  by  the  quaint  name  of  "  crow's-nest,"  had  been  fitted 
up  in  each  vessel.  A  mate  was  now  sent  into  each,  to 
ascertain  what  might  be  discovered  to  windward.  Almost 
at  the  same  instant,  these  young  seamen  hailed  their  re 
spective  decks,  and  gave  notice  that  a  wide  field  was 
coming  in  upon  them,  and  must  eventually  crush  them, 
unless  avoided.  This  startling  intelligence  reached  the 
two  commanders  in  the  very  same  moment.  The  emer 
gency  demanded  decision,  and  each  man  acted  for  himself. 
Roswell  ordered  his  helm  put  down,  and  his  schooner 
tacked.  The  water  was  not  rough  enough  to  prevent  the 
success  of  the  manoeuvre.  On  the  other  hand,  Daggett 
kept  a  rap  full,  and  stood  on.  Roswell  manifested  the  most 
judgment  and  seamanship.  He  was  now  far  enough  from 
the  cape  to  beat  to  windward ;  and,  by  going  nearer  to  the 
enemy,  he  might  always  run  along  its  southern  boundary, 
profit  by  any  opening,  and  would  be  by  as  much  as  he  could 
thus  gain,  to  windward  of  the  coast.  Daggett  had  one 
advantage.  By  standing  on,  in  the  event  of  a  return  be 
coming  necessary,  he  would  gain  in  time.  In  ten  minutes 
the  two  schooners  were  a  mile  asunder.  We  shall  first 
follow  that,  of  Roswell  Gardiner's,  in  his  attempt  to  escape. 

The  first  floe,  which  was  ripping  and  tearing  one  of  its 
angles  into  fragments,  as  it  came  grinding  down  on  the 
cape,  soon  compelled  the  vessel  to  tack.  Making  short 
reaches,  Roswell  ere  long  found  himself  fully  a  mile  to 
windward  of  the  rocks,  and  sufficiently  near  to  the  new 
floe  to  discern  its  shape,  drift,  and  general  character.  Ill 
27 


312  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

eastern  end  had  lodged  upon  the  field  that  first  came  in, 
and  was  adding  to  the  vast  momentum  with  which  that 
enormous  floe  was  pressing  down  upon  the  cape.  Large 
as  was  that  first  visiter  to  the  bay,  this  was  of  at  least  twice 
if  not  of  thrice  its  dimensions.  What  gave  Roswell  the 
most  concern  was  the  great  distance  that  this  field  extended 
to  the  westward.  He  went  up  into  the  crow's-nest  himself, 
and,  aided  by  the  light  of  a  most  brilliant  moon,  and  a  sky 
without  a  cloud,  he  could  perceive  the  blink  of  ice  in  that 
direction,  as  he  fancied,  for  fully  two  leagues.  What  was 
unusual,  perhaps,  at  that  early  season  of  the  year,  these 
floes  did  not  consist  of  a  vast  collection  of  numberless 
cakes  of  ice ;  but  the  whole  field,  so  far  as  could  then  be 
ascertained,  was  firm  and  united.  The  nights  were  now 
so  cold  that  ice  made  fast  wherever  there  was  water ;  and 
it  occurred  to  our  young  master,  that,  possibly,  fragments 
that  had  once  been  separated  and  broken  by  the  waves, 
might  have  become  re-united  by  the  agency  of  the  frost. 
Roswell  descended  from  the  crow's-nest  half  chilled  by  a 
cutting  wind,  though  it  blew  from  a  warm  quarter.  Sum 
moning  his  mates,  he  asked  their  advice. 

"  It  seems  to  me,  Captain  Gar'ner,"  Hazard  replied, 
"there's  very  little  choice.  Here  we  are,  so  far  as  I  can 
make  it  out,  embayed,  and  we  have  only  to  box  about  until 
day-light  comes,  when  some  chance  may  turn  up  to  help 
us.  If  so,  we  must  turn  it  to  account;  if  not,  we  must 
make  up  our  minds  to  winter  here." 

This  was  coolly  and  calmly  said ;  though  it  was  clear 
enough  that  Hazard  was  quite  in  earnest. 

"  You  forget  there  may  be  an  open  passage  to  the  west 
ward,  Mr.  Hazard,"  Roswell  rejoined,  "  arid  that  we  may 
yet  pass  out  to  sea  by  it.  Captain  Daggett  is  already  out 
of  sight  in  the  western  board,  and  we  may  do  well  to  stand 
on  after  him." 

"Ay,  ay,  sir  —  I  know  all  that,  Captain  Gar'ner,  and  it 
may  be  as  you  say,  but  when  I  was  aloft,  half  an  hour 
since,  if  there  wasn't  the  blink  of  ice  in  that  direction, 
quite  round  to  the  back  of  the  island,  there  wasn't  the 
blink  of  ice  nowhere  hereabouts.  I  'm  used  to  the  sight 
of  it,  and  can't  well  be  mistaken." 

"  There  is  always  ice  on  that  side  of  the  land,  Hazard, 


THE    SEA    LIONS.  313 

and  you  may  have  seen  the  blink  of  the  bergs  which  have 
hugged  the  cliffs  in  that  quarter  all  summer.  Still,  that  is 
not  proving  we  shall  find  no  outlet.  This  craft  can  go 
through  a  very  small  passage,  and  we  must  take  care  and 
find  one  in  proper  time.  Wintering  here  is  out  of  the 
question.  A  hundred  reasons  tell  us  not  to  think  of  such 
a  thing,  besides  the  interests  of  our  owners.  We  are  walk 
ing  along  this  floe  pretty  fast,  though  I  think  the  vessel  is 
too  much  by  the  head ;  don't  it  strike  you  so,  Hazard  ?" 

"Lord,  sir,  it's  nothing  but  the  ice  that  has  made,  and 
is  making  for'ard !  Before  we  got  so  near  the  field  as  to 
find  a  better  lee,  the  little  lipper  that  came  athwart  our 
bows  froze  almost  as  soon  as  it  wet  us.  I  do  suppose,  sir, 
there  are  now  several  tons  of  ice  on  our  bows,  counting 
from  channel  to  channel,  forward." 

On  an  examination  this  proved  to  be  true,  and  the  know 
ledge  of  the  circumstance  did  not  at  all  contribute  to  Gar 
diner's  feeling  of  security.  He  saw  there  was  no  time  to 
be  lost,  and  he  crowded  sail  with  a  view  of  forcing  the 
vessel  past  the  dangers  if  possible,  and  of  getting  her  into 
a  milder  climate  But  even  a  fast-sailing  schooner  will 
scarcely  equal  our  wishes  under  such  circumstances.  There 
was  no  doubt  that  the  Sea  Lion's  speed  was  getting  to  be 
affected  by  the  manner  in  which  her  bows  were  weighed 
down  by  ice,  in  addition  to  the  discomfort  produced  by 
cold,  damp,  and  the  presence  of  a  slippery  substance  on 
the  deck  and  rigging.  Fortunately  there  was  not  much 
spray  flying,  or  matters  would  have  been  much  worse.  As 
it  was,  they  were  bad  enough,  and  very  ominous  of  future 
evil. 

While  the  Sea  Lion  of  Oyster  Pond  was  running  along 
the  margin  of  the  ice  in  the  mariner  just  described,  and 
after  the  blink  to  the  westward  had  changed  to  a  visible 
field,  making  it  very  uncertain  whether  any  egress  was  to 
be  found  in  that  quarter  or  not,  an  opening  suddenly  ap 
peared  trending  to  the  northward,  and  sufficiently  wide,  as 
Roswell  thought,  to  enable  him  to  beat  through  it.  Putting 
his  helm  down,  his  schooner  came  heavily  round,  and  was 
filled  on  a  course  that  soon  carried  her  half  a  mile  into 
this  passage.  At  first,  everything  seemed  propitious,  the 
channel  rather  opening  than  otherwise,  while  the  course 


314  THE     SEA     LIONS. 

was  such — north-north-west — as  enabled  the  vessel  to  make 
very  long  legs  on  one  tack,  and  that  the  best.  After  going 
about  four  or  five  times,  however,  all  these  flattering  symp 
toms  suddenly  changed,  by  the  passage's  terminating  in  a 
cul  df,  sac.  Almost  at  the  same  instant  the  ice  closed 
rapidly  in  the  schooner's  wake.  An  effort  was  made  to 
run  back,  but  it  failed  in  consequence  of  an  enormous 
floe's  turning  on  its  centre,  having  met  resistance  from  a 
field  closer  in,  that  was,  in  its  turn,  stopped  by  the  rocks. 
Roswell  saw  at  once  that  nothing  could  be  done  at  the 
moment.  He  took  in  all  his  canvass,  as  well  as  the  frozen 
cloth  could  be  handled,  got  out  ice-anchors,  and  hauled 
his  vessel  into  a  species  of  cove  where  there  would  be  the 
least  danger  of  a  nip,  should  the  fields  continue  to  close. 

All  this  time  Daggett  was  as  busy  as  a  bee.  He  rounded 
the  headland,  and  flattered  himself  that  he  was  about  to 
slip  past  all  the  rocks,  and  get  out  into  open  water,  when 
the  vast  fields  of  which  the  blink  had  been  seen  even  by 
those  in  the  other  vessel,  suddenly  stretched  themselves 
across  his  course  in  a  way  that  set  at  defiance  all  attempts 
to  go  any  further  in  that  direction.  Daggett  wore  round, 
and  endeavoured  to  return.  This  was  by  no  means  as  easy 
as  it  was  to  go  down  before  the  wind,  and  his  bows  were 
also  much  encumbered  with  ice ;  more  so,  indeed,  than 
those  of  the  other  schooner.  Once  or  twice  his  craft  missed 
stays  in  consequence  of  getting  so  much  by  the  head,  and 
it  was  deemed  necessary  to  heave-to,  and  take  to  the  axes. 
A  great  deal  of  extra  and  cumbrous  weight  was  gotten  rid 
of,  but  an  hour  of  most  precious  time  was  lost. 

By  the  time  Daggett  was  ready  to  make  sail  again,  he 
found  his  return  round  the  headland  was  entirely  cut  off, 
by  the  field's  having  come  in  absolute  contact  with  the 
rocks ! 

It  was  now  midnight,  and  the  men  on  board  both  vessels 
required  rest.  A  watch  was  set  in  each,  and  most  of  the 
people  were  permitted  to  turn  in.  Of  course,  proper  look 
outs  were  had,  but  the  light  of  the  moon  was  not  sufficiently 
distinct  to  render  it  safe  to  make  any  final  efforts  under  its 
favour.  No  great  alarm  was  felt,  there  being  nothing  un 
usual  in  a  vessel's  being  embayed  in  the  ice;  and  so  long 
as  she  was  not  nipped  or  pressed  upon  by  actual  contact, 


THE    SEA    LIONS.  315 

the  position  was  thought  safe  rather  than  the  reverse.  It 
was  desirable,  moreover,  for  the  schooners  to  communicate 
with  each  other ;  for  some  advantage  might  be  known  to 
one  of  the  masters  that  was  concealed  by  distance  from  his 
companion.  Without  concert,  therefore,  Roswell  and 
Daggett  came  to  the  same  general  conclusions,  and  waited 
patiently. 

The  day  came  at  last,  cold  and  dreary,  though  not  alto 
gether  without  the  relief  of  an  air  that  blew  from  regions 
far  warmer  than  the  ocean  over  which  it  was  now  travel 
ling.  Then  the  two  schooners  became  visible  from  each 
other,  and  Roswell  saw  the  jeopardy  of  Daggett,  and  Dag 
gett  saw  the  jeopardy  of  Roswell.  The  vessels  were  little 
more  than  a  mile  apart,  but  the  situation  of  the  Vineyard 
Lion  was  much  the  most  critical.  She  had  made  fast  to 
the  floe,  but  her  support  itself  was  in  a  steady  and  most 
imposing  motion.  As  soon  as  Roswell  saw  the  manner  in 
which  his  consort  was  surrounded,  and  the  very  threatening 
aspect  of  the  danger  that  pressed  upon  him,  his  first  impulse 
was  to  hasten  to  him,  with  a  party  of  his  own  people,  to 
offer  any  assistance  he  could  give.  After  looking  at  the 
ice  immediately  around  his  own  craft,  where  all  seemed  to 
be  right,  he  called  over  the  names  of  six  of  his  men,  order 
ed  them  to  eat  a  warm  breakfast,  and  to  prepare  to  accom 
pany  him. 

In  twenty  minutes  Roswell  was  leading  his  little  party 
across  the  ice,  each  man  carrying  an  axe,  or  some  other 
implement  that  it  was  supposed  might  be  of  use.  It  was 
by  no  means  difficult  to  proceed ;  for  the  surface  of  the 
floe,  one  seemingly  more  than  a  league  in  extent,  was  quite 
smooth,  and  the  snow  on  it  was  crusted  to  a  strength  that 
would  have  borne  a  team. 

"  The  water  between  the  ice  and  the  rocks  is  a  much 
narrower  strip  than  I  had  thought,"  said  Roswell,  to  his 
constant  attendant,  Stimson.  "  Here,  it  does  not  appear  to 
be  a  hundred  yards  in  width !" 

"  Nor  is  it,  sir — whew — this  trotting  in  so  cold  a  climate 

makes  a  man  puff  like  a  whale  blowing  —  but,  Captain 

Gar'ner,  that  schooner  will  be  cut  in  two  before  we  can 

get  to  her.     Look,  sir;   the  floe  has  reached  the  rocks 

27* 


316  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

already,  quite  near  her ;  and  it  does  not  stop  the  drift  at 
all,  seemingly." 

Roswell  made  no  reply ;  the  state  of  the  Vineyard  Lion 
did  appear  to  be  much  more  critical  than  he  had  previously 
imagined.  Until  he  came  nearer  to  the  land,  he  had  formed 
no  notion  of  the  steady  power  with  which  the  field  was 
setting  down  on  the  rocks  on  which  the  broken  fragments 
were  now  creeping  like  creatures  endowed  with  life.  Oc 
casionally,  there  would  be  loud  disruptions,  and  the  move 
ment  of  the  floe  would  become  more  rapid ;  then,  again,  a 
sort  of  pause  would  succeed,  and  for  a  moment  the  ap 
proaching  party  felt  a  gleam  of  hope.  But  all  expectations 
of  this  sort  were  doomed  to  be  disappointed. 

"Look,  sir !"  exclaimed  Stimson — "she  went  down  afore 
it  twenty  fathoms  at  that  one  set.  She  must  be  awful  near 
the  rocks,  sir !" 

All  the  men  now  stopped.  They  knew  they  were  power 
less  :  and  intense  anxiety  rendered  them  averse  to  move. 
Attention  appeared  to  interfere  with  their  walking  on  the 
ice ;  and  each  held  his  breath  in  expectation.  They  saw 
that  the  schooner,  then  less  than  a  cable's  length  from  them, 
was  close  to  the  rocks ;  and  the  next  shock,  if  anything 
like  the  last,  must  overwhelm  her.  To  their  astonishment, 
instead  of  being  nipped,  the  schooner  rose  by  a  stately 
movement  that  was  not  without  grandeur,  upheld  by  broken 
cakes  that  had  got  beneath  her  bottom,  and  fairly  reached 
the  shelf  of  rocks  almost  unharmed.  Not  a  man  had  left 
her ;  but  there  she  was,  placed  on  the  shore,  some  twenty 
feet  above  the  surface  of  the  sea,  on  rocks  worn  smooth  by 
the  action  of  the  waves !  Had  the  season  been  propitious, 
and  did  the  injury  stop  here,  it  might  have  been  possible  to 
get  the  craft  into  the  water  again,  arid  still  carry  her  to 
America. 

But  the  floe  was  not  yet  arrested.  Cake  succeeded  cake, 
one  riding  over  another,  until  a  wall  of  ice  rose  along  the 
shore,  that  Roswell  and  his  companions,  with  all  their 
activity  and  courage,  had  great  difficulty  in  crossing.  They 
succeeded  in  getting  over  it,  however ;  but  when  they 
reached  the  unfortunate  schooner,  she  was  literally  buried. 
The  masts  were  broken,  the  sails  torn,  riggrng  scattered, 
and  sides  stove.  The  Sea  Lion  of  Martha's  Vineyard  waa 


THE    SEA    LIONS.  317 

a  worthless  wreck — worthless  as  to  all  purposes  but  that 
of  being  converted  into  materials  for  a  smaller  craft,  or  to 
be  used  as  fuel. 

All  this  had  been  done  in  ten  minutes !  Then  it  was 
that  the  vast  superiority  of  nature  over  the  resources  of 
man  made  itself  apparent.  The  people  of  the  two  vessels 
stood  aghast  with  this  sad  picture  of  their  own  insignifi 
cance  before  their  eyes.  The  crew  of  the  wreck,  it  is  true, 
had  escaped  without  difficulty ;  the  movement  having  been 
as  slow  and  steady  as  it  was  irresistible.  But  there  they 
were,  in  the  clothes  they  had  on,  with  all  their  effects 
buried  under  piles  of  ice  that  were  already  thirty  or  forty 
feet  in  height. 

"  She  looks  as  if  she  was  built  there,  Gar'ner !"  Daggett 
coolly  observed,  as  he  stood  regarding  the  scene  with  eyes 
as  intently  riveted  on  the  wreck  as  human  organs  were 
ever  fixed  on  any  object.  "  Had  a  man  told  me  this  could 
happen,  I  would  not  have  believed  him '." 

"  Had  she  been  a  three-decker,  this  ice  would  have  treat 
ed  her  in  the  same  way.  There  is  a  force  in  such  a  field 
that  walls  of  stone  could  not  withstand." 

"  Captain  Gar'ner — Captain  Gar'ner,"  called  out  Stim- 
son,  hastily;  "we'd  better  go  back,  sir;  our  own  craft  is 
in  danger.  She  is  drifting  fast  in  towards  the  cape,  and 
may  reach  it  afore  we  can  get  to  her !" 

Sure  enough,  it  was  so.  In  one  of  the  changes  that  are 
so  unaccountable  among  the  ice,  the  floe  had  taken  a  sud 
den  and  powerful  direction  towards  the  entrance  of  the 
Great  Bay.  It  was  probably  owing  to  the  circumstance 
that  the  inner  field  had  forced  its  way  past  the  cape,  and 
made  room  for  its  neighbour  to  follow.  A  few  of  Daggett' s 
people,  with  Daggett  himself,  remained  to  see  what  might 
yet  be  saved  from  the  wreck ;  but  all  the  rest  of  the  men 
started  for  the  cape,  towards  which  the  Oyster  Pond  craft 
was  now  directly  setting.  The  distance  was  less  than  a 
league;  and,  as  yet,  there  was  not  much  snow  on  the  rocks. 
By  taking  an  upper  shelf,  it  was  possible  to  make  pretty 
good  progress;  and  such  was  the  manner  of  Roswell's  pre 
sent  march. 

It  was  an  extraordinary  sight  to  see  the  coast  along  which 
our  party  was  hastening,  just  at  that  moment.  As  the  cakes 


318  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

of  ice  were  broken  from  the  field,  they  were  driven  op. 
ward  by  the  vast  pressure  from  without,  and  the  whole  line 
of  the  shore  seemed  as  if  alive  with  creatures  that  were 
issuing  from  the  ocean  to  clamber  on  the  rocks.  Roswel] 
had  often  seen  that  very  coast  peopled  with  seals,  as  it  now 
appeared  to  be  in  activity  with  fragments  of  ice,  that  were 
writhing,  and  turning,  and  rising,  one  upon  another,  as  if 
possessed  of  the  vital  principle. 

In  half  an  hour  Roswell  and  his  party  reached  the  house. 
The  schooner  was  then  less  than  half  a  mile  from  the  spot, 
still  setting  in,  along  with  the  outer  field,  but  not  nipped. 
So  far  from  being  in  danger  of  such  a  calamity,  the  httle 
basin  in  which  she  lay  had  expanded,  instead  of  closing; 
and  it  would  have  been  possible  to  handle  a  quick-working 
craft  in  it,  under  her  canvass.  An  exit,  however,  was  quite 
out  of  the  question ;  there  being  no  sign  of  any  passage  to 
or  from  that  icy  dock.  There  the  craft  still  lay,  anchored 
to  the  weather-floe,  while  the  portion  of  her  crew  which 
remained  on  board  was  as  anxiously  watching  the  coast  as 
those  who  were  on  the  coast  watched  her.  At  first,  Ros 
well  gave  his  schooner  up ;  but  on  closer  examination  found 
reason  to  hope  that  she  might  pass  the  rocks,  and  enter  the 
inner,  rather  than  the  Great,  Bay. 


CHAPTER  XXIIL 

M  To  prayer ; — for  the  glorious  sun  is  gone, 
And  the  gathering  darkness  of  night  comes  on  j 
Like  a  curtain  from  God's  kind  hand  it  flows, 
To  shade  the  couch  where  his  children  repose. 
Then  kneel,  while  the  watching  stars  are  bright, 
And  give  your  last  thoughts  to  the  guardian  of  night." 

WABX. 

DESOLATE,  indeed,  and  nearly  devoid  of  hope,  had  the 
situation  of  our  sealers  now  become.  It  was  mid-day,  and 
it  was  freezing  everywhere  in  the  shade.  A  bright  genial 
sun  was  shedding  its  glorious  rays  on  the  icy  panorama ; 


THE    SEA    LIONS.  319 

but  it  was  so  obliquely  as  to  be  of  hardly  any  use  in  dis 
pelling  the  frosts.  Far  as  the  eye  could  see,  even  from  the 
elevation  of  the  cape,  there  was  nothing  but  ice,  with  the 
exception  of  that  part  of  the  Great  Bay  into  which  the  floe 
had  not  yet  penetrated.  To  the  southward,  there  stood 
clustering  around  the  passage  a  line  of  gigantic  bergs, 
placed  like  sentinels,  as  if  purposely  to  stop  all  egress  in 
that  direction.  The  water  had  lost  its  motion  in  the  shift 
of  wind,  and  new  ice  had  formed  over  the  whole  bay,  as 
was  evident  by  a  white  sparkling  line  that  preceded  the 
irresistible  march  of  the  floe. 

As  Roswell  gazed  on  this  scene,  serious  doubts  darken 
ed  his  mind  as  to  his  escaping  from  this  frozen  chain  until 
the  return  of  another  summer.  It  is  true  that  a  south  wind 
might  possibly  produce  a  change,  and  carry  away  the 
blockading  mass;  but  every  moment  rendered  this  so  much 
the  less  probable.  Winter,  or  what  would  be  deemed  win 
ter  in  most  regions,  was  already  setting  in ;  and  should  the 
ice  really  become  stationary  in  and  around  the  group,  all 
hope  of  its  moving  must  vanish  for  the  next  eight  months. 

Daggett  reached  the  house  about  an  hour  before  sunset. 
He  had  succeeded  in  cutting  a  passage  through  the  ice  as 
far  as  the  cabin-door  of  his  unfortunate  schooner,  when 
there  was  no  difficulty  in  descending  into  the  interior  parts 
of  the  vessel.  The  whole  party  came  in  staggering  under 
heavy  loads.  Pretty  much  as  a  matter  of  course,  each  man 
brought  his  own  effects.  Clothes,  tobacco,  rum,  small- 
stores,  bedding,  quadrants,  and  similar  property,  was  that 
first  attended  to.  At  that  moment,  little  was  thought  of  the 
skins  and  oil.  The  cargo  was  neglected,  while  the  minor 
articles  had  been  eagerly  sought. 

Roswell  was  on  board  his  own  schooner,  now  again  in 
dangerous  proximity  to  the  cape.  She  was  steadily  setting 
in,  when  Daggett  rejoined  him.  The  crew  of  the  lost  vessel 
remained  in  the  house,  where  they  lighted  a  fire  and  depo 
sited  their  goods,  returning  to  the  wreck  for  another  load, 
taking  the  double  sets  of  wheels  along  with  them.  When  the 
Jwo  masters  met,  they  conferred  together  earnestly,  receiv 
ing  into  their  councils  such  of  the  officers  as  were  on  board. 
The  security  of  the  remaining  vessel  was  now  all-important , 
and  it  was  not  to  be  concealed  that  she  was  in  imminent 


320 


THE    SEA    LIONS. 


jeopardy.  The  course  aken  by  the  floe  was  directly 
towards  the  most  rugged  part  of  Cape  Hazard ;  and  the 
rate  of  the  movement  such  as  to  threaten  a  very  speedy 
termination  of  the  matter.  There  was  one  circumstance, 
however,  and  only  that  one,  which  offered  a  single  chance 
of  escape.  The  opening  around  the  schooner  still  existed 
in  part,  about  half  of  it  having  been  lost  in  the  collision 
with  the  outermost  point  of  the  rocks.  It  was  this  species 
of  vacuum  that,  by  removing  all  resistance  at  that  particu 
lar  spot,  indeed,  which  had  given  the  field  its  most  danger 
ous  cant,  turning  the  movement  of  the  vessel  towards  the 
rocks.  The  chance,  therefore,  existed  in  the  possibility — 
and  it  was  little  more  than  a  bare  possibility  —  of  moving 
the  schooner  in  that  small  area  of  open  water,  and  of  taking 
her  far  enough  south  to  clear  the  most  southern  extremity 
of  the  wall  of  stone  that  protected  the  cove.  As  yet,  this 
open  water  did  not  extend  far  enough  to  admit  of  the 
schooner's  being  taken  to  the  point  in  question ;  but  it  was 
slowly  tending  in  that  direction,  and  did  not  the  basin 
close  altogether  ere  that  desirable  object  was  achieved,  the 
vessel  might  yet  be  saved.  In  order,  however,  to  do  this, 
it  would  be  necessary  to  cut  a  sort  of  dock  or  slip  in  the 
ice  of  the  cove,  into  which  the  craft  might  shoot,  as  a  place 
of  refuge.  Once  within  the  cove,  fairly  behind  the  point 
of  the  rocks,  there  would  be  perfect  safety ;  if  suffered  to 
drift  to  the  southward  of  that  shelter,  this  schooner  would 
probably  be  lost  like  her  consort,  and  very  much  in  the 
same  manner. 

Gardiner  now  sent  a  gang  of  hands  to  the  desired  point, 
armed  with  saws,  and  the  slip  was  commenced.  The  ice 
in  the  cove  was  still  only  two  or  three  inches  thick,  and  the 
work  went  bravely  on.  Instead  of  satisfying  himself  with 
cutting  a  passage  merely  behind  the  point  of  rock,  Hazard 
opened  one  quite  up  into  the  cove,  to  the  precise  place 
where  the  schooner  had  been  so  long  at  anchor.  Just  as 
the  sun  was  setting,  the  crisis  arrived.  So  heavy  had  been 
the  movement  towards  the  rocks,  that  Roswell  saw  he 
could  delay  no  longer.  Were  he  to  continue  where  Jie 
was,  a  projection  on  the  cape  would  prevent  his  passage  to 
the  entrance  of  the  cove ;  he  would  be  shut  in,  and  he 
might  be  certain  that  the  Sea  Lion  would  be  crushed  if 


THE    SEA     LIONS.  321 

the  floe  pressed  home  upon  the  shore.  The  ice-anchors 
were  cut  out  accordingly,  the  jib  was  hoisted,  and  the 
schooner  wore  short  round  on  her  heel.  The  space  be 
tween  the  floe  and  the  projection  in  the  rocks  just  named, 
did  not  now  exceed  a  hundred  feet;  and  it  was  lessening 
fast.  Much  more  room  existed  on  each  side  of  this  parti 
cular  excrescence  in  the  rugged  coast,  the  space  north 
being  still  considerable,  while  that  to  the  southward  might 
be  a  hundred  yards  in  width ;  the  former  of  these  areas 
being  owing  to  the  form  of  the  basin,  and  the  latter  to  the 
shape  of  the  shore, 

In  the  first  of  the  basins  named,  the  schooner  wore  short 
round  on  her  heel,  her  foresail  being  set  to  help  her.  A 
breathless  moment  passed  as  she  ran  down  towards  the 
narrow  strait.  It  was  quickly  reached,  and  that  none  too 
soon  ;  the  opening  now  not  exceeding  sixty  feet.  The  yards 
of  the  vessel  almost  brushed  the  rocks  in  passing;  but  she 
went  clear.  As  soon  as  in  the  lower  basin,  as  one  might 
call  it,  the  jib  and  foresail  were  taken  in,  and  the  head  of 
the  mainsail  was  got  on  the  craft.  This  helped  her  to  luff 
up  towards  the  slip,  which  she  reached  under  sufficient 
head-way  fairly  to  enter  it.  Lines  were  thrown  to  the  people 
on  the  ice,  who  soon  hauled  the  schooner  up  to  the  head 
of  her  frozen  dock.  Three  cheers  broke  spontaneously  out 
of  the  throats  of  the  men,  as  they  thus  achieved  the  step 
which  assured  them  of  the  safety  of  the  vessel,  so  far  as  the 
ice  was  concerned  !  In  this  way  do  we  estimate  our  advan 
tages  and  disadvantages,  by  comparison.  In  the  abstract, 
the  situation  of  the  sealers  was  still  sufficiently  painful ; 
though  compared  with  what  it  would  have  been  with  the 
other  schooner  wrecked,  it  was  security  itself. 

By  this  time  it  was  quite  dark ;  and  a  day  of  excitement 
and  fatigue  required  a  night  of  rest.  After  supping,  the 
men  turned  in  ;  the  Vineyarders  mostly  in  the  house,  where 
they  occupied  their  old  bunks.  When  the  moon  rose,  the 
party  from  the  wreck  arrived,  with  their  carts  well  loaded, 
and  themselves  half  frozen,  notwithstanding  their  toil.  In 
a  short  time,  all  were  buried  in  sleep. 

When  Roswell  Gardiner  came  on  deck  next  morning, 
his  first  glance  told  him  how  little  was  the  chance  of  his 
party's  returning  north  that  season.  The  strange  floe  had 


322  THE    SEA     LIOWS, 

driven  into  the  Great  Bay,  completely  covering  its  surface, 
lining  the  shores  far  and  near  with  broken  and  glittering 
cakes  of  ice ;  and,  as  it  were,  hermetically  sealing  the  place 
against  all  egress.  New  ice,  an  inch  or  two  thick,  or  even 
six  or  eight  inches  thick,  might  have  been  sawed  through, 
and  a  passage  cut  even  for  a  league,  should  it  be  necessary. 
Such  things  were  sometimes  done,  and  great  as  would  have 
been  the  toil,  our  sealers  would  have  attempted  it,  in  pre 
ference  to  running  the  risk  of  passing  a  winter  in  that 
region.  But  almost  desperate  as  would  have  been  even 
that  source  of  refuge,  the  party  was  completely  cut  off  from 
its  possession.  To  think  of  sawing  through  ice  as  thick  as 
that  of  the  floe,  for  any  material  distance,  would  be  like  a 
project  to  tunnel  the  Alps. 

Melancholy  was  the  meeting  between  Roswell  and  Dag- 
gett  that  morning.  The  former  was  too  manly  and  generous 
to  indulge  in  reproaches,  else  might  he  well  have  told  the 
last  that  all  this  was  owing  to  him.  There  is  a  singular 
propensity  in  us  all  to  throw  the  burthen  of  our  own  blun 
ders  on  the  shoulders  of  other  folk.  Roswell  had  a  little 
of  this  weakness,  overlooking  the  fact  that  he  was  his  own 
master ;  and  as  he  had  come  to  the  group  by  himself,  he 
ought  to  have  left  it  in  the  same  manner,  as  soon  as  his 
own  particular  task  was  accomplished.  But  Roswell  did 
not  see  this  quite  as  distinctly  as  he  saw  the  fact  that  Dag- 
gett's  detentions  and  indirect  appeals  to  his  better  feelings 
had  involved  him  in  all  these  difficulties.  Still,  while  thus 
he  felt,  he  made  no  complaint. 

All  hope  of  getting  north  that  season  now  depended  on 
the  field-ice's  drifting  away  from  the  Great  Bay  before  it 
got  fairly  frozen  in.  So  jammed  and  crammed  with  it  did 
every  part  of  the  bay  appear  to  be,  however,  that  little 
could  be  expected  from  that  source  of  relief.  This  Dag- 
gett  admitted  in  the  conversation  he  held  with  Roswell,  as 
soon  as  the  latter  joined  him  on  the  rocky  terrace  beneath 
the  house. 

"  The  wisest  thing  we  can  do,  then,"  replied  our  hero, 
"  will  be  to  make  as  early  preparations  as  possible  to  meet 
the  winter.  If  we  are  to  remain  here,  a  day  gained  now 
will  be  worth  a  week  a  month  hence.  If  we  should  happily 
escape,  the  labour  thus  expended  will  not  kill  us." 


THE    SEA    LIONS.  323 

M  Quite  true — very  much  as  you  say,  certainly,"  answer- 
ed  Daggett,  musing.  "  I  was  thinking  as  you  came  ashore, 
Gar'ner,  if  a  lucky  turn  might  not  be  made  in  this  wise: — 
I  have  a  good  many  skins  in  the  wreck,  you  see,  and  you 
have  a  good  deal  of  ile  in  your  hold — now,  by  starting  some 
of  that  ile,  and  pumping  it  out,  and  shocking  the  casks, 
room  might  be  made  aboard  of  you  for  all  my  skins.  I 
think  we  could  run  all  of  the  last  over  on  them  wheels  in 
the  course  of  a  week." 

"  Captain  Daggett,  it  is  by  yielding  so  much  to  your 
skins  that  we  have  got  into  all  this  trouble." 

"  Skins,  measure  for  measure,  in  the  way  of  tonnage, 
will  bring  a  great  deal  more  than  ile." 

Roswell  smiled,  and  muttered  something  to  himself,  a 
little  bitterly.  He  was  thinking  of  the  grievous  disappoint 
ment  and  prolonged  anxiety  that  it  pained  him  to  believe 
Mary  would  feel  at  his  failure  to  return  home  at  the  ap 
pointed  time ;  though  it  would  probably  have  pained  him 
more  to  believe  she  would  not  thus  be-  disappointed  and 
anxious.  Here  his  displeasure,  or  its  manifestation,  ceased ; 
and  the  young  man  turned  his  thoughts  on  the  present  ne 
cessities  of  his  situation. 

Daggett  appearing  very  earnest  on  the  subject  of  re 
moving  his  skins  before  the  snows  came  to  impede  the 
path,  Roswell  could  urge  no  objection  that  would  be  likely 
to  prevail ;  but  his  acquiescence  was  obtained  by  means 
of  a  hint  from  Stimson,  who  by  this  time  had  gained  his 
officer's  ear. 

"  Let  him  do  it,  Captain  Gar'ner,"  said  the  boat-steerer, 
in  an  aside,  speaking  respectfully,  but  earnestly.  "  He  '11 
never  stow  'em  in  our  hold,  this  season  at  least;  but  they  Ml 
make  excellent  filling-in  for  the  sides  of  this  hut." 

"  You  think  then,  Stephen,  that  we  are  likely  to  pass 
the  winter  here?"  • 

"  We  are  in  the  hands  of  Divine  Providence,  sir,  which 
will  do  with  us  as  seems  the  best  in  the  eyes  of  never-fail 
ing  wisdom.  At  all  events,  Captain  Gar'ner,  I  think  'twill 
be  safest  to  act  at  once  as  if  we  had  the  winter  afore  us. 
In  my  judgment,  this  house  might  be  made  a  good  deal 
more  comfortable  for  us  all,  in  such  a  case,  than  our  craft; 
for  we  should  not  only  have  more  room,  but  might  have  as 
28 


324  THE    SEA    LIONS 

many  fires  as  we  want,  and  more  than  we  can  find  Fuel 
for." 

"Ay,  there 's  the  difficulty,  Stephen.  Where  are  we  to 
find  wood,  throughout  a  polar  winter,  for  even  one  fire?" 

"  We  must  be  saving,  sir,  and  thoughtful,  and  keep  our 
selves  warm  as  much  as  we  can  by  exercise.  I  have  had  a 
taste  of  this  once,  in  a  small  way,  already ;  and  know  what 
ought  to  be  done,  in  many  partic'lars.  In  the  first  place, 
the  men  must  keep  themselves  as  clean  as  water  will  make 
them — dirt  is  a  great  helper  of  cold  —  and  the  water  must 
be  just  as  frosty  as  human  natur'  can  bear  it.  This  will  set 
everything  into  actyve  movement  inside,  and  bring  out 
warmth  from  the  heart,  as  it  might  be.  That 's  my  princi 
ple  of  keeping  warm,  Captain  Gar'ner." 

"  1  dare  say  it  may  be  a  pretty  good  one,  Stephen,"  an 
swered  Roswell,  "  and  we  '11  bear  it  in  mind.  As  for  stoves 
we  are  well  enough  off,  for  there  is  one  in  the  house,  and  a 
good  large  one  it  is ;  then,  there  is  a  stove  in  each  cabin, 
and  there  are  the  two  cambooses.  If  we  had  fuel  for  them 
all,  I  should  feel  no  concern  on  the  score  of  warmth." 

"  There 's  the  wrack,  sir.  By  cutting  her  up  at  once, 
we  should  get  wood  enough,  in  my  judgment,  to  see  it 
out." 

Roswell  made  no  reply ;  but  he  looked  intently  at  the 
boat-steerer  for  half  a  minute.  The  idea  was  new  to  him  ; 
and  the  more  he  thought  on  the  subject,  the  greater  was 
the  confidence  it  gave  him  in  the  result.  Daggett,  he  well 
knew,  would  not  consent  to  the  mutilation  of  his  schooner, 
wreck  as  it  was,  so  long  as  the  most  remote  hope  existed 
of  getting  her  again  into  the  water.  The  tenacity  with 
which  this  man  clung  to  property  was  like  that  which  is 
imputed  to  the  life  of  the  cat;  and  it  was  idle  to  expect 
any  concessions  from  him  on  a  subject  like  that.  Never 
theless,  necessity  is 'a  hard  master;  and  if  the  question 
were  narrowed  down  to  one  of  burning  the  materials  of  3 
vessel  that  was  in  the  water,  and  in  good  condition,  and 
of  burning  those  of  one  that  was  out  of  the  water,  with 
holes  cut  through  her  bottom  in  several  places,  and  other 
wise  so  situated  as  to  render  repairs  extremely  difficult,  if 
not  impossible,  even  Daggett  would  be  compelled  to  submit 
to  circumstances. 


THE    SE        LIONS.  325 

It  was  accordingly  suggested  to  the  people  of  the  Vine 
yard  Lion  that  they  could  do  no  better  than  to  begin  at 
once  to  remove  everything  they  could  come  at,  and  which 
could  be  transported  from  the  wreck  to  the  house.  As 
there  was  little  to  do  on  board  the  vessel  afloat,  her  crew 
cheerfully  offered  to  assist  in  this  labour.  The  days  were 
shortening  sensibly  and  fast,  and  no  time  was  to  be  lost, 
the  distance  being  so  great  as  to  make  two  trips  a  day  a 
matter  of  great  labour.  No  sooner  was  the  plan  adopted, 
therefore,  than  steps  were  taken  to  set  about  its  execution. 

It  is  unnecessary  for  us  to  dwell  minutely  on  everything 
that  occurred  during  the  succeeding  week  or  ten  days. 
The  wind  shifted  to  south-west  the  very  day  that  the  Sea 
Lion  got  back  into  her  little  harbour ;  and  this  seemed  to 
put  a  sudden  check  on  the  pressure  of  the  vast  floe.  Ne 
vertheless,  there  was  no  counter-movement,  the  ice  remain 
ing  in  the  Great  Bay  seemingly  as  firmly  fastened  as  if  it 
had  originally  been  made  there.  Notwithstanding  this  shift 
of  the  wind  to  a  cold  point  of  the  compass,  the  thermometer 
rose,  and  it  thawed  freely  about  the  middle  of  the  day,  in 
all  places  to  which  the  rays  of  the  sun  had  access.  This 
enabled  the  men  to  work  with  more  comfort  than  they 
could  have  done  in  the  excessively  severe  weather ;  as  it 
was  found  that  respiration  became  difficult  when  it  was  so 
very  cold. 

Access  was  now  obtained  to  the  wreck  by  cutting  a  re 
gular  passage  to  the  main  hatch  through  the  ice.  The 
schooner  stood  nearly  upright,  sustained  by  fragments  of 
the  floe ;  and  there  were  extensive  caverns  all  around  her, 
produced  by  the  random  manner  in  which  the  cakes  had 
come  up  out  of  their  proper  element  like  so  many  living 
things.  Among  these  caverns  one  might  have  wandered 
for  miles  without  once  coming  out  into  the  open  air,  though 
they  were  cold  and  cheerless,  and  had  little  to  attract  the 
adventurer  after  the  novelty  was  abated.  In  rising  from 
the  water,  the  schooner  had  been  roughly  treated ;  but 
once  sustained  by  the  ice,  her  transit  had  been  easy  and 
tolerably  safe.  Several  large  cakes  lay  on  or  over  her, 
sustained  more  by  other  cakes  that  rested  on  the  rocks 
than  by  the  timbers  of  the  vessel  herself.  These  cakes 
formed  a  sort  of  roof,  and  as  they  did  not  drip,  they  served 


326  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

to  make  a  shelter  against  the  wind ;  for,  at  the  point  where 
the  wreck  lay,  the  south-west  gales  came  howling  round 
the  base  of  the  mountain,  piercing  the  marrow  itself  in  the 
bones.  At  the  hut  it  was  very  different.  There  the  heights 
made  a  lee  that  extended  all  over  the  cape,  and  for  some 
distance  to  the  westward ;  while  the  whole  power  the  sun 
possessed  in  that  high  latitude  was  cast,  very  obliquely  it 
is  true,  but  clearly,  and  without  any  other  drawback  than 
its  position  in  the  ecliptic,  fairly  on  the  terrace,  the  hut 
above,  and  the  rocks  around  it.  On  the  natural  terrace, 
indeed,  it  was  still  pleasant  to  walk  and  work,  and  even  to 
sit  for  a  few  hours  in  the  middle  of  the  day ;  for  winter  was 
not  yet  come  in  earnest  in  that  frozen  world. 

One  of  Roswell's  first  objects  was  to  transport  most  of 
the  eatables  from  the  wreck ;  for  he  foresaw  the  need  there 
would  be  for  everything  of  the  sort.  Neither  vessel  had 
laid  in  a  stock  of  provisions  for  a  longer  period  than  about 
twelve  months,  of  which  nearly  half  were  now  gone.  This 
allowance  applied  to  salted  meats  and  bread,  which  are 
usually  regarded  as  the  base  of  a  ship's  stores.  There  were 
several  barrels  of  flour,  a  few  potatoes,  a  large  quantity  of 
onions,  a  few  barrels  of  corn-meal,  or  '  injin,'  as  it  is  usually 
termed  in  American  parlance,  an  entire  barrel  of  pickled 
cucumbers,  another  about  half  full  of  cabbage  preserved  in 
the  same  way,  and  an  entire  barrel  of  molasses.  In  addi 
tion,  there  was  a  cask  of  whiskey,  a  little  wine  and  brandy 
to  be  used  medicinally,  sugar,  brown,  whitey-brown  and 
browny-white,  and  a  pretty  fair  allowance  of  tea  and  coffee ; 
the  former  being  a  Hyson-skin,  and  the  latter  San  Domingo 
of  no  very  high  quality.  Most  of  these  articles  were  trans 
ported  from  the  wreck  to  the  house,  in  the  course  of  the 
few  days  that  succeeded,  though  Daggett  insisted  on  a  cer 
tain  portion  of  the  supplies  being  left  in  his  stranded  craft 
Not  until  this  was  done  would  Roswell  listen  to  any  pro 
posal  of  Daggett's  to  transfer  the  skins.  Twice  during 
these  few  days,  indeed,  did  the  Vineyard  master  come  to  a 
pause  in  his  proceedings,  as  the  weather  grew  milder,  and 
gleams  of  a  hope  of  being  able  yet  to  get  away  that  season 
crossed  his  mind.  On  the  last  of  these  occasions  of  mis 
giving,  Roswell  was  compelled  to  lead  his  brother  master 
up  on  the  plain  of  the  island,  to  an  elevation  of  some  three 


THE    SEA    LIONS.  327 

hundred  feet  above  the  level  of  the  ocean,  and  more  than 
half  that  distance  higher  than  the  house,  and  point  out  to 
him  a  panorama  of  field-ice  that  the  eye  could  not  com 
mand.  Until  that  vast  plain  opened,  or  became  riven  by 
the  joint  action  of  the  agitated  ocean  and  the  warmth  of  a 
sun  from  which  the  rays  did  not  glance  away  from  the. 
frozen  surface,  like  light  obliquely  received,  and  as  ob 
liquely  reflected  from  a  mirror,  it  was  useless  to  think  of 
releasing  even  the  uninjured  vessel ;  much  less  that  which 
lay  riven  and  crushed  on  the  rocks. 

"  Were  every  cake  of  this  ice  melted  into  water,  Dag- 
gett,"  Roswell  continued,  "  it  would  not  float  off  your 
schooner.  The  best  supplied  ship-yard  in  America  could 
hardly  furnish  the  materials  for  ways  to  launch  her ;  and  I 
never  knew  of  a  vessel's  being  dropped  into  the  water  some 
twenty  feet  nearly  perpendicular." 

"  I  don't  know  that,"  answered  Daggett,  stoutly.  "  See 
what  they  're  doing  now-a-days,  and  think  nothing  of  it. 
I  have  seen  a  whole  row  of  brick  houses  turned  round  by 
the  use  of  jack-screws ;  and  one  building  actually  taken 
down  a  hill  much  higher  than  the  distance  you  name. 
Commodore  Rodgers  has  just  hauled  a  heavy  frigate  out 
of  the  water,  and  means  to  put  her  back  again,  when  he 
has  done  with  her.  What  has  been  done  once  can  be  done 
twice.  I  do  not  like  giving  up  'till  I'm  forced  to  it." 

"  That  is  plain  enough,  Captain  Daggett,"  returned  Ros 
well,  smiling.  "That  you  are  game,  no  one  can  deny;  but 
it  will  all  come  to  nothing.  Neither  Commodore  Rodgers 
nor  Commodore  anybody  else  could  put  your  craft  into  the 
water  again  without  something  to  do  it  with." 

"  You  think  it  would  be  asking  too  much  to  take  your 
schooner,  and  go  across  to  the  main  next  season  a'ter  timber 
to  make  ways?"  put  in  Daggett,  inquiringly.  "  She  stands 
up  like  a  church,  and  nothing  would  be  easier  than  to  lay 
down  ways  under  her  bottom." 

"  Or  more  difficult  than  to  make  them  of  any  use,  after 
you  had  put  them  there.  No,  no,  my  good  sir,  you  must 
think  no  more  of  this ;  though  it  may  be  possible  to  make 
a  cover  for  the  cargo,  and  return  and  recover  it  all,  by 
freighting  a  craft  from  Rio,  on  our  way  north." 

Daggett  gave  a  quick,  inquisitive  glance  at  his  compa- 


328  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

nion,  and  Roswell's  colour  mounted  to  his  cheeks;  for, 
while  he  really  thought  the  plan  just  mentioned  quite  feasi 
ble,  he  was  conscious  of  foreseeing  that  it  might  be  made 
the  means  of  throwing  off  his  troublesome  companion,  as 
he  himself  drew  near  to  the  West  Indies  and  their  keys. 

This  terminated  the  discussion  for  the  time.  Both  of  the 
masters  busied  themselves  in  carrying  on  the  duty  which 
had  now  fallen  into  a  regular  train.  As  much  of  the  in 
terest  of  what  is  to  be  related  will  depend  on  what  was 
done  in  these  few  days,  it  may  be  well  to  be  a  little  more 
explicit  in  stating  the  particulars. 

The  reader  will  understand  that  the  house,  of  which  so 
much  had  already  been  made  by  our  mariners,  was  nothing 
but  a  shell.  It  had  a  close  roof,  one  that  effectually  turned 
water,  and  its  siding,  though  rough,  was  tight  and  rather 
thicker  than  is  usual ;  being  made  of  common  inch  boards, 
roughly  planed,  and  originally  painted  red.  There  were 
four  very  tolerable  windows,  and  a  decent  substantial  floor 
of  planed  plank.  All  this  had  been  well  put  together,  rather 
more  attention  than  is  often  bestowed  on  such  structures 
having  been  paid  by  the  carpenter  to  the  cracks  and  joints 
on  account  of  the  known  sharpness  of  the  climate,  even  in 
the  warm  months.  Still,  all  this  made  a  mere  shell.  The 
marrow-freezing  winds  which  would  soon  come  —  had  in 
deed  come  —  might  be  arrested  by  such  a  covering,  it  is 
true ;  but  the  little  needle-like  particles  of  the  frost  would 
penetrate  such  a  shelter,  as  their  counterparts  of  steel 
pierce  cloth.  It  was  a  matter  of  life  and  death,  therefore, 
to  devise  means  to  exclude  the  cold,  in  order  that  the  vital 
heat  might  be  kept  in  circulation  during  the  tremendous 
season  that  was  known  to  be  approaching. 

Stimson  had  much  to  say  on  the  subject  of  the  arrange 
ments  taken.  He  was  the  oldest  man  in  the  two  crews, 
and  the  most  experienced  sealer.  It  happened  that  he  had 
once  passed  a  winter  at  Orange  Harbour,  in  the  immediate 
vicinity  of  Cape  Horn.  It  is  true,  that  is  an  inhabited 
country,  if  the  poor  degraded  creatures  who  dwell  there 
can  be  termed  inhabitants ;  and  has  its  trees  and  vegeta 
tion,  such  as  they  are.  The  difference  between  Orange 
Harbour  and  Sealer's  Land,  in  this  respect,  must  be  some 
thing  like  that  which  all  the  travelling  world  knows  to  exist 


THE    SEA     LIONS.  329 

between  a  winter's  residence  at  the  Hospital  of  the  Great 
St.  Bernard,  and  a  winter's  residence  at  one  of  the  villages 
a  few  leagues  lower  down  the  mountain.  At  Sealer's  Land, 
if  there  was  literally  no  vegetation,  there  was  so  little  as 
scarcely  to  deserve  the  name.  Of  fuel  there  was  none,  with 
the  exception  of  that  which  had  been  brought  there.  Never 
theless,  the  experience  of  a  winter  passed  at  such  a  place 
as  Orange  Harbour,  must  count  for  a  great  deal.  Cape 
Horn  is  in  nearly  56°,  and  Sealer's  Land — we  may  as  weil 
admit  this  much  —  is,  by  no  means,  10°  to  the  southward 
of  that.  There  must  be  a  certain  general  resemblance  in 
the  climates  of  the  two  places;  and  he  who  had  gone 
through  a  winter  at  one  of  them,  must  have  had  a  very 
tolerable  foretaste  of  what  was  to  be  suffered  at  the 
other.  This  particular  experience,  therefore,  added  to  his 
general  knowledge,  as  well  as  to  his  character,  contributed 
largely  to  Stephen's  influence  in  the  consultations  that  took 
place  between  the  two  masters,  at  which  he  was  usually 
present. 

"It's  useless  to  be  playing  off,  in  an  affair  like  this, 
Captain  Gar'ner,"  said  Stephen,  on  one  occasion.  "Away 
from  this  spot  all  the  navies  of  the  'arth  could  not  now 
carry  us,  until  God's  sun  comes  back  in  his  course,  to  drive 
the  winter  away  afore  it.  I  have  my  misgivin's,  gentlemen, 
touching  this  great  floe  that  has  got  jammed  in  among  these 
islands,  whether  it  will  ever  move  ag'in;  for  I  don't  think 
its  coming  in  here  is  a  common  matter." 

"  In  which  case,  what  would  become  of  us,  Ste 
phen?" 

"  Why,  sir,  we  should  be  at  God's  marcy,  then,  jist  as 
we  be  now ;  or  would  be,  was  we  on  the  east  eend  itself. 
I  won't  say  that  two  resolute  and  strong  arms  might  not  cut 
a  way  through  for  one  little  craft  like  ourn,  if  they  had 
summer  fully  afore  'em,  and  know'd  they  was  a-workin'  to 
wards  a  fri'nd  instead  of  towards  an  inimy.  There's  a 
great  deal  in  the  last ;  every  man  is  encouraged  when  he 
thinks  he  's  nearer  to  the  eend  of  his  journey  a'ter  a  hard 
day's  work,  than  he  was  when  he  set  out  in  the  mornin'. 
But  to  undertake  sich  an  expedition  at  this  season,  would 
be  sartain  destruction.  No,  sir ;  all  we  can  do,  now,  is  to 
lay  up  for  the  winter,  and  that  with  great  care  and  pru- 


330  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

dence.  We  must  turn  ourselves  into  so  many  ants,  and 
show  their  forethought  and  care." 

"  What  would  you  recommend  as  our  first  step,  Stim« 
son  ?"  asked  Daggett,  who  had  been  an  attentive  listener. 

"  I  would  advise,  sir,  to  begin  hardening  the  men  as 
soon  as  I  could.  We  have  too  much  fire  in  the  stove,  both 
for  our  stock  of  wood  and  for  the  good  of  the  people.  Make 
the  men  sleep  under  fewer  clothes,  and  don't  let  any  on  'em 
hang  about  the  galley  fire,  as  some  on  'em  love  to  do,  even 
now,  most  desperately.  Them  'ere  men  will  be  good  for 
nothin'  ten  weeks  hence,  unless  they  're  taken  off  the  fires, 
as  a  body  would  take  off  a  pot  or  a  kettle,  and  are  set  out 
to  harden." 

"  This  is  a  process  that  may  be  easier  advised  than  per 
formed,  perhaps,"  Roswell  quietly  observed. 

"  Don't  you  believe  that,  Captain  Gar'ner.  I  've  known 
the  most  shiverin',  smoke-dried  hands  in  a  large  crew, 
hardened  and  brought  to  an  edge,  a'ter  a  little  trouble,  as 
a  body  would  temper  an  axe  with  steel.  The  first  thing  to 
be  done  is  to  make  'em  scrub  one  another  every  mornin' 
in  cold  water.  This  gives  a  life  to  the  skin  that  acts  much 
the  same  as  a  suit  of  clothes.  Yes,  gentlemen ;  put  a  fel 
low  in  a  tub  for  a  minute  or  two  of  a  mornin',  and  you  may 
do  almost  anything  you  please  with  him  all  day  a'terwards. 
One  pail  of  water  is  as  good  as  a  pee-jacket.  And  above 
all  things,  keep  the  stoves  clear.  The  cooks  should  be  told 
not  to  drive  their  fires  so  hard ;  and  we  can  do  without  the 
stove  in  the  sleeping-room  a  great  deal  better  now  than 
most  on  us  think.  It  will  help  to  save  much  wood,  if  we 
begin  at  once  to  caulk  and  thicken  our  siding,  and  make 
the  house  warmer.  Was  the  hut  in  a  good  state,  we  might 
do  without  any  other  fire  than  that  in  the  camboose  for  two 
months  yet." 

Such  was  the  general  character  of  Stephen's  counsel, 
and  very  good  advice  it  was.  Not  only  did  Roswell  adopt 
the  scrubbing  process,  which  enabled  him  to  throw  aside  a 
great  many  clothes  in  the  course  of  a  week,  but  he  kept 
aloof  from  the  fires,  to  harden,  as  Stimson  had  called  it. 
That  which  was  thus  enforced  by  example  was  additionally 
enjoined  by  precept.  Several  large,  hulking,  idle  fellows, 
who  greatly  loved  the  fire,  were  driven  away  from  it  by 


THE    SEA     LIONS.  331 

shame;  and  the  heat  was  allowed  to  diffuse  itself  more 
equally  through  the  building. 

Any  one  who  has  ever  had  occasion  to  be  a  witness  of 
the  effect  of  the  water-cure  process  in  enabling  even  deli 
cate  women  to  resist  cold  and  damp,  may  form  some  notion 
of  the  great  improvement  that  was  made  among  our  sealers, 
by  adopting  and  rigidly  adhering  to  Stimson's  cold  water 
and  no-fire  system.  Those  who  had  shivered  at  the  very 
thoughts  of  ice-water,  soon  dabbled  in  it  like  young  ducks ; 
and  there  was  scarcely  an  hour  in  the  day  when  the  half- 
hogshead,  that  was  used  as  a  bath,  had  not  its  tenant.  This 
tub  was  placed  on  the  ice  of  the  cove,  with  a  tent  over  it; 
and  a  well  was  made  through  which  the  water  was  drawn. 
Of  course,  the  axe  was  in  great  request,  a  new  hole  being 
required  each  morning,  and  sometimes  two  or  three  times 
in  the  course  of  the  day.  The  effect  of  these  ablutions  was 
very  soon  apparent.  The  men  began  to  throw  aside  their 
pee-jackets,  and  worked  in  their  ordinary  clothing,  which 
was  warm  and  suited  to  a  high  latitude,  with  a  spirit  and 
vigour  at  which  they  were  themselves  surprised.  The  fire 
in  the  camboose  sufficed  as  yet;  and,  at  evening,  the  pee- 
jacket,  with  the  shelter  of  the  building,  the  crowded  rooms, 
and  the  warm  meals,  for  a  long  time  enabled  them  to  get 
on  without  consuming  anything  in  the  largest  stove.  Stim 
son's  plans  for  the  protection  of  the  hut,  moreover,  soon 
began  to  tell.  The  skins,  sails,  and  much  of  the  rigging, 
were  brought  over  from  the  wreck  ;  by  means  of  the  carts, 
so  long  as  there  was  no  snow,  and  by  means  of  sledges 
when  the  snow  fell  and  rendered  wheeling  difficult.  Luckily, 
the  position  of  the  road  along  the  rocks  caused  the  upper 
snow  to  melt  a  little  at  noon-day,  while  it  froze  again, 
firmer  and  firmer,  each  night.  The  crust  soon  bore,  and 
it  was  found  that  the  sledges  furnished  even  better  means 
of  transportation  than  the  wheels. 

There  was  a  little  controversy  about  the  use  of  the  skins, 
Daggett  continuing  to  regard  them  as  cargo.  Necessity 
and  numbers  prevailed  in  the  end,  and  the  whole  building 
was  lined  with  them,  four  or  five  deep,  by  placing  them 
inside  of  beckets  made  of  the  srrialler  rigging.  By  stuffing 
these  skins  compactly,  within  ropes  so  placed  as  to  keep 
all  snug,  a  very  material  defence  against  the  entrance  of 


332  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

cold  was  interposed.  But  this  was  not  all.  Inside  of  the 
skins  Stimson  got  up  hangings  of  canvass,  using  the  sails 
of  the  wreck  for  that  purpose.  It  was  riot  necessary  to  cut 
these  sails — Daggett  would  not  have  suffered  it  —  hut  they 
were  suspended,  and  crammed  into  openings,  and  other 
wise  so  arranged  as  completely  to  conceal  and  shelter  every 
side,  as  well  as  the  ceilings  of  both  rooms.  Portions  were 
(fitted  with  such  address  as  to  fall  before  the  windows,  to 
which  they  formed  very  warm  if  not  very  ornamental  cur 
tains.  Stephen,  however,  induced  Roswell  to  order  out 
side  shutters  to  be  made  and  hung;  maintaining  that  one 
such  shutter  would  soon  count  as  a  dozen  cords  of  wood. 

Much  of  the  wood,  too,  was  brought  over  from  the  wreck  j 
and  that  which  had  been  carelessly  abandoned  on  the  rocks 
was  all  collected  and  piled  carefully  and  conveniently  near 
the  outer  door  of  the  hut ;  which  door,  by  the  way,  looked 
inward,  or  towards  the  rocks  in  the  rear  of  the  building, 
where  it  opened  on  a  sort  of  yard,  that  Roswell  hoped  to 
be  able  to  keep  clear  of  ice  and  snow  throughout  the  win 
ter.  He  might  as  well  have  expected  to  melt  the  glaciers 
of  Grindewald  by  lighting  a  fire  on  the  meadows  at  their 
base  ! 

Stephen  had  another  project  to  protect  the  house,  and  to 
give  facilities  for  moving  outside,  when  the  winter  should 
be  at  the  hardest.  In  his  experience  at  Orange  Harbour, 
he  had  found  that  great  inconvenience  was  sustained  in 
consequence  of  the  snow's  melting  around  the  building  he 
inhabited,  which  came  from  the  warmth  of  the  fire  within. 
To  avoid  this,  a  very  serious  evil,  he  had  spare  sails  of 
heavy  canvass  laid  across  the  roof  of  the  warehouse,  a 
building  of  no  great  height,  and  secured  them  to  the  rocks 
below  by  means  of  anchors,  kedges,  and  various  other  de 
vices;  in  some  instances,  by  lashings  to  projections  in  the 
cliffs.  Spare  spars,  leaning  from  the  roof,  supported  this 
tent-like  covering,  and  props  beneath  sustained  the  spars. 
This  arrangement  was  made  on  only  two  sides  of  the  build 
ing,  one  end,  and  the  side  which  looked  to  the  north; 
materials  failing  before  the  whole  place  was  surrounded. 
The  necessity  for  admitting  light,  too,  admonished  the 
sealers  of  the  inexpediency  of  thus  shrouding  all  their  win 
dows.  The  bottom  of  this  tent  was  only  ten  feet  from  the 


THE    SEA    LIONS.  333 

side  of  the  house,  which  gave  it  greater  security  than  if  it 
had  been  more  horizontal,  while  it  made  a  species  of 
verandah  in  which  exercise  could  be  taken  with  greater 
freedom  than  in  the  rooms.  Everything  was  done  to 
strengthen  the  building  in  all  its  parts  that  the  ingenuity 
of  seamen  could  suggest ;  and  particularly  to  prevent  the 
tent-verandah  from  caving  in. 

Stephen  intimated  that  their  situation  possessed  one 
great  advantage,  as  well  as  disadvantage.  In  consequence 
of  standing  on  a  shelf  with  a  lower  terrace  so  close  as  to 
be  within  the  cast  of  a  shovel,  the  snow  might  be  thrown 
below,  and  the  hut  relieved.  The  melted  snow,  too,  would 
be  apt  to  take  the  same  direction,  under  the  law  that  go 
verns  the  course  of  all  fluids.  The  disadvantage  was  in  the 
barrier  of  rock  behind  the  hut,  which,  while  it  served  ad 
mirably  to  break  the  piercing  south  winds,  would  very 
naturally  tend  to  make  high  snow-banks  in  drifting  storms 


CHAPTEE  XXIV. 

"  My  foot  on  the  ice-berg  has  lighted, 
When  hoarse  the  wild  winds  veer  about; 
My  eye  when  the  bark  is  benighted, 
Sees  the  lamp  of  the  light-house  go  out. 
I  'm  the  sea-bird,  sea-bird,  sea-bird, 
Lone  looker  on  despair ; 
The  sea-bird,  sea-bird,  sea-bird, 
The  only  witness  there." 

BRAIKARB. 

Two  months  passed  rapidly  away  in  the  excitement  and 
novelty  of  the  situation  and  pursuits  of  the  men.  In  that 
time,  all  was  done  that  the  season  would  allow ;  the  house 
being  considered  as  complete,  and  far  from  uncomfortable. 
The  days  had  rapidly  lessened  in  length,  and  the  nights 
increased  proportionably,  until  the  sun  was  visible  only  for 
a  few  hours  at  a  time,  and  then  merely  passing  low  along 
the  northern  horizon.  The  cold  increased  in  proportion, 


334  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

though  the  weather  varied  almost  as  much  in  that  high 
latitude  as  it  does  in  our  own.  It  had  ceased  to  thaw  much, 
however ;  and  the  mean  of  the  thermometer  was  not  many 
degrees  above  zero.  Notwithstanding  this  low  range  of 
the  mercury,  the  men  found  that  they  were  fast  getting 
acclimated,  and  that  they  could  endure  a  much  greater 
intensity  of  cold  than  they  had  previously  supposed  possi 
ble.  As  yet,  there  had  been  nothing  to  surprise  natives  of 
New  York  and  New  England,  there  rarely  occurring  a 
winter  in  which  weather  quite  as  cold  as  any  they  had  yet 
experienced  in  the  antarctic  sea,  does  not  set  in,  and  last 
for  some  little  time.  Even  while  writing  this  very  chapter 
of  our  legend,  here  in  the  mountains  of  Otsego,  one  of  these 
Siberian  visits  has  been  paid  to  our  valley.  For  the  last 
three  days  the  thermometer  has  ranged,  at  sunrise,  between 
17°  and  22°  below  zero ;  though  there  is  every  appearance 
of  a  thaw,  and  we  may  have  the  mercury  up  to  40°  above, 
in  the  course  of  the  next  twenty-four  hours.  Men  accus 
tomed  to  such  transitions,  and  such  extreme  cold,  are  not 
easily  laid  up  or  intimidated. 

A  great  deal  of  snow  fell  about  this  particular  portion 
of  the  year ;  more,  indeed,  than  at  a  later  period.  This 
snow  produced  the  greatest  inconvenience;  for  it  soon  be 
came  so  deep  as  to  form  high  banks  around  the  house,  and 
to  fill  all  the  customary  haunts  of  the  men.  Still,  there 
were  places  that  were  in  a  great  measure  exempt  from  this 
white  mantle.  The  terrace  immediately  below  the  hut, 
which  has  so  often  been  mentioned,  was  one  of  these  bare 
spots.  It  was  so  placed  as  to  be  swept  by  both  the  east  and 
the  west  winds,  which  generally  cleared  it  of  everything 
like  snow,  as  fast  as  it  fell ;  and  this  more  effectually  than 
could  be  done  by  a  thousand  brooms.  The  level  of  rock 
usually  travelled  in  going  to  or  from  the  wreck,  was  an 
other  of  these  clear  places.  It  was  a  sort  of  shelf,  too 
narrow  to  admit  of  the  snow's  banking,  and  too  much 
raked  by  the  winds  that  commonly  accompanied  snow,  to 
suffer  the  last  to  lodge  to  any  great  depth.  Snow  there 
was,  with  a  hard  crust,  as  has  already  been  mentioned ;  but 
it  was  not  snow  ten  or  fifteen  feet  deep,  as  occurred  in  many 
other  places.  There  were  several  points,  however,  where 
banks  had  formed,  even  on  this  ledge,  through  which  the 


THE     SEA.     LIONS.  335 

men  were  compelled  to  cut  their  way  by  the  use  of  shovels; 
an  occupation  that  gave  them  exercise,  and  contributed  to 
keep  them  in  health,  if  it  was  of  no  other  service.  It  was 
found  that  the  human  frame  could  not  endure  one-half  the 
toil,  in  that  low  state  of  the  mercury,  that  it  could  bear  in 
one  a  few  degrees  higher. 

Daggett  had  not,  by  any  means,  abandoned  his  craft,  as 
much  as  he  had  permitted  her  to  be  dismantled.  Every 
day  or  two  he  had  some  new  expedient  for  getting  the 
schooner  off  in  the  spring;  though  all  who  heard  them 
were  perfectly  convinced  of  their  impracticableness.  This 
feeling  induced  him  to  cause  his  own  men  to  keep  open 
the  communication ;  and  scarce  a  day  passed  in  which  he 
did  not  visit  the  poor  unfortunate  craft.  Nor  was  the  place 
without  an  interest  of  a  very  peculiar  sort.  It  has  been 
said  that  the  fragments  of  ice,  some  of  which  were  more 
than  a  hundred  feet  in  diameter,  and  all  of  which  were 
eight  or  ten  feet  in  thickness,  had  been  left  on  their  edges, 
inclining  in  a  way  to  form  caverns  that  extended  a  great 
distance.  Now,  it  so  happened,  that  just  around  the  wreck 
the  cakes  were  so  distributed  as  to  intercept  the  first  snows 
which  filled  the  outer  passages,  got  to  be  hardened,  and 
covered  anew  by  fresh  storms,  thus  interposed  an  effectual 
barrier  to  the  admission  of  any  more  of  the  frozen  element 
within  the  ice.  The  effect  was  to  form  a  vast  range  of 
natural  galleries  amid  the  cakes,  that  were  quite  clear  of 
any  snow  but  that  which  had  adhered  to  their  surfaces,  and 
which  offered  little  or  no  impediment  to  motion  —  nay, 
which  rather  aided  it,  by  rendering  the  walking  less  slip 
pery.  As  the  deck  of  the  schooner  had  been  cleared, 
leaving  an  easy  access  to  all  its  entrances,  cabin,  hold,  and 
forecastle,  this  put  the  Vineyard  Lion  under  cover,  while 
it  admitted  of  all  her  accommodations  being  used.  A  por 
tion  of  her  wood  had  been  left  in  her,  it  will  be  remembered, 
as  well  as  her  camboose.  The  last  was  got  into  the  cabin, 
and  Daggett,  attended  by  two  or  three  of  his  hands,  would 
pass  a  good  deal  of  his  time  there.  One  reason  given  for 
this  distribution  of  the  forces,  was  the  greater  room  it 
allowed  those  who  remained  at  the  hut  for  motion.  The 
deck  of  this  vessel  being  quite  clear,  it  offered  a  very 
favourable  spot  for  exercise ;  better,  in  fact,  than  the  ter- 
29 


336  THE    SEA     LIONS. 

race  beneath  the  hut,  being  quite  sheltered  from  the  winds, 
and  much  warmer  than  it  had  been  originally,  or  ever  since 
the  heavy  fall  of  snows  commenced.  Daggett  paced  his 
quarter-deck  hour  after  hour,  almost  deluding  himself  with 
the  expectation  of  sailing  for  home  as  soon  as  the  return 
of  summer  would  permit  him  to  depart. 

Around  the  hut  the  snow  early  made  vast  embankments. 
Every  one  accustomed  to  the  action  of  this  particular  con 
dition  of  one  of  the  great  elements,  will  understand  that  a 
bend  in  the  rocks  outward,  or  a  curve  inward,  must  neces 
sarily  affect  the  manner  in  which  these  banks  were  formed. 
The  wind  did  not,  by  any  means,  blow  from  any  one  point 
of  the  compass;  though  the  south-western  cliffs  might  be 
almost  termed  the  weather-side  of  the  island,  so  much  more 
frequently  did  the  gales  come  from  that  quarter  than  from 
any  other.  The  cape  where  the  cove  lay,  and  where  the 
house  had  been  set  up,  being  at  the  north-eastern  point, 
and  much  protected  by  the  high  table-land  in  its  rear,  it 
occupied  the  warmest  situation  in  the  whole  region.  The 
winds  that  swept  most  of  the  north  shore,  but  which,  owing 
to  a  curvature  in  its  formation,  did  not  often  blow  home  to 
the  hut,  even  when  they  whistled  along  the  terrace  only  a 
hundred  feet  beneath  and  more  salient,  were  ordinarily 
from  the  south-west  outside ;  though  they  got  a  more  west 
erly  inclination  by  following  the  land  under  the  cliffs. 

A  bank  of  snow  may  be  either  a  cause  of  destruction  or 
a  source  of  comfort.  Of  course,  a  certain  degree  of  cold 
must  exist  wherever  snow  is  to  be  found ;  but,  unless  in 
absolute  contact  with  the  human  body,  it  does  not  usually 
affect  the  system  beyond  a  certain  point.  On  the  other 
hand,  it  often  breaks  the  wind,  and  it  has  been  known  to 
form  a  covering  to  flocks,  houses,  &c.,  that  has  contributed 
essentially  to  their  warmth.  We  incline  to  the  opinion  that 
if  one  slept  in  a  cavern  formed  in  the  snow,  provided  he 
could  keep  himself  dry,  and  did  not  come  in  absolute  con 
tact  with  the  element,  he  would  not  find  his  quarters  very 
uncomfortable,  so  long  as  he  had  sufficient  clothing  to  con 
fine  the  animal  warmth  near  his  person.  Now,  our  sealers 
enjoyed  some  such  advantage  as  this;  though  not  literally 
in  the  same  degree.  Their  house  was  not  covered  with 
snow,  though  a  vast  bank  was  already  formed  quite  near  it 


THE    SEA    LIONS.  337 

and  a  good  deal  had  begun  to  pile  against  the  tent.  Sin 
gular  as  it  may  seem,  on  the  east  end  of  the  building,  and 
on  the  south  front,  which  looked  in  towards  the  cliff  next 
the  cove,  there  was  scarcely  any  snow  at  all.  This  was  in 
part  owing  to  the  constant  use  of  the  shovel  and  broom, 
but  more  so  to  the  currents  of  air,  which  usually  carried 
everything  of  so  light  a  nature  as  a  flake  to  more  quiet 
spots,  before  it  was  suffered  to  settle  on  the  ground. 

Roswell  early  found,  what  his  experience  as  an  Ameri 
can  might  have  taught  him,  that  the  melting  of  the  snow, 
in  consequence  of  the  warmth  of  the  fires,  caused  much 
more  inconvenience  than  the  snow  itself.  The  latter,  when 
dry,  was  easily  got  along  with;  but,  when  melted  in  the 
day,  and  converted  into  icicles  at  night,  it  became  a  most 
unpleasant  and  not  altogether  a  safe  neighbour ;  inasmuch 
as  there  was  really  danger  from  the  sort  of  damp  atmosphere 
it  produced. 

The  greatest  ground  of  Roswell  Gardiner's  apprehen 
sions,  however,  was  for  the  supply  of  fuel.  Much  of  that 
brought  from  home  had  been  fairly  used  in  the  camboose, 
and  in  the  stove  originally  set  up  in  the  hut.  Large  as  that 
stock  had  been,  a  very  sensible  inroad  had  been  made  upon 
it;  and,  according  to  a  calculation  he  had  made,  the  wood 
regularly  laid  in  would  not  hold  out  much  more  than  half 
the  time  that  it  would  be  indispensable  to  remain  on  the 
island.  This  was  a  grave  circumstance,  and  one  that  de 
manded  very  serious  consideration.  Without  fuel  it  would 
be  impossible  to  survive ;  no  hardening  process  being  suffi 
cient  to  fortify  the  human  frame  to  a  degree  that  would 
resist  the  influence  of  an  antarctic  winter. 

From  the  moment  it  was  probable  the  party  would  be 
obliged  to  pass  the  winter  at  Sealer's  Land,  therefore,  Ros 
well  had  kept  a  vigrVmt  eye  on  the  wood.     Stimson  had 
more  than  once,  spoken  to  him  on  the  subject,  and  with 
great  prudence. 

"  Warmth  must  be  kept  among  us,"  said  the  old  boat- 
steerer,  "or  there  will  be  no  hope  for  the  stoutest  man  in 
either  crew.  We  've  a  pretty  good  stock  of  coffee,  and 
that  is  better,  any  day,  than  all  the  rum  and  whiskey  that 
was  ever  distilled.  Good  hot  coffee  of  a  morning  will  put 


338  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

life  into  us  the  coldest  day  that  ever  come  out  of  either 
pole ;  and  they  do  say  the  south  is  colder  than  the  north, 
though  I  never  could  understand  why  it  should  be  so." 

"  You  surely  understand  the  reason  why  it  grows  warmer 
as  we  approach  the  equator,  and  colder  as  we  go  from  it, 
whether  we  go  north  or  south  1" 

Stimson  assented ;  though  had  the  truth  been  said,  he 
would  have  been  obliged  to  confess  that  he  knew  no  more 
than  the  facts. 

"All  sailors  know  sich  things,  Captain  Gar'ner ;  though 
they  know  it  with  very  different  degrees  of  exper'ence. 
But  few  get  as  far  south  as  I  have  been,  to  pass  a  winter. 
A  good  pot  of  hot  coffee  of  a  morning  will  go  as  far  as  a 
second  pee-jacket,  if  a  man  has  to  go  out  into  the  open  air 
when  the  weather  is  at  the  hardest/' 

"  Luckily,  our  small  stores  are  quite  abundant,  and  we 
are  better  off  for  coffee  and  sugar  than  for  anything  else. 
I  laid  in  of  both  liberally  when  we  were  at  Rio." 

"  Yes,  Rio  is  a  good  place  for  the  articles.  But  coffee 
must  be  hot  to  do  a  fellow  much  good  in  one  of  these  high- 
latitude  winters ;  and  to  be  hot  there  must  be  fuel  to  heat 
it." 

"  I  am  afraid  the  wood  will  not  hold  out  much  more 
than  half  the  time  we  shall  be  here.  Fortunately,  we  had 
a  large  supply ;  but  the  other  schooner  was  by  no  means 
as  well  furnished  with  fuel  as  she  ought  to  have  been  for 
such  a  voyage." 

"  Well,  sir,  I  suppose  you  know  what  must  be  done  next 
in  such  a  case.  Without  warm  food,  men  can  no  more  Jive 
through  one  of  these  winters,  than  they  can  live  without 
food  at  all.  If  the  Vineyard  craft  has  no  proper  fuel  aboard 
her,  we  must  make  fuel  of  her." 

Roswell  regarded  Stephen  with  fixed  attention  for  some 
time.  The  idea  was  presented  to  his  mind  for  the  second 
time,  and  he  greatly  liked  it. 

"That  might  do,"  he  said;  "though  it  will  not  be  an 
easy  matter  to  make  Captain  Dagget  consent  to  such  a 
thing." 

"  Let  him  go  two  or  three  mornings  without  his  warm 
meal  and  hot  coffee,"  answered  Stimson,  shaking  his  head, 
•f  and  he  will  be  glad  enough  to  come  into  the  scheme.  A 


THE    SEA    LIONS.  339 

man  soon  gets  willing  to  set  fire  to  anything  that  will  burn 
in  such  a  climate.  A  notion  has  been  floating  about  in  my 
mind,  Captain  Gar'ner,  that  1  Ve  several  times  thought  I 
would  mention  to  you.  D  'ye  think,  sir,  any  benefit  could 
be  made  of  that  volcano  over  the  bay,  should  the  worst  get 
to  the  worst  with  us?" 

"  I  have  thought  of  the  same  thing,  Stephen ;  though  I 
fear  in  vain.  I  suppose  no  useful  heat  can  be  given  out 
there,  until  one  gets  too  near  the  bad  air  to  breathe  it. 
What  you  say  about  breaking  up  the  other  schooner,  how 
ever,  is  worthy  of  consideration ;  and  I  will  speak  to  Cap 
tain  Daggett  about  it." 

Roswell  was  as  good  as  his  word ;  and  the  Vineyard 
mariner  met  the  proposal  as  one  repels  an  injury.  Never 
were  our  two  masters  so  near  a  serious  misunderstanding, 
as  when  Roswell  suggested  to  Daggett  the  expediency  of 
breaking  up  the  wreck,  now  that  the  weather  was  endura- 
rable,  and  the  men  could  work  with  reasonable  comfort 
and  tolerable  advantage. 

"  The  man  who  puts  an  axe  or  a  saw  into  that  unfortu 
nate  craft,"  said  Daggett,  firmly,  "  I  shall  regard  as  an 
enemy.  It  is  a  hard  enough  bed  that  she  lies  on,  without 
having  her  ribs  and  sides  torn  to  pieces  by  hands." 

This  was  the  strange  spirit  in  which  Daggett  continued 
to  look  at  the  condition  of  the  wreck  !  It  was  true  that  the 
ice  prevented  his  actually  seeing  the  impossibility  of  his 
ever  getting  his  schooner  into  the  water  again ;  but  no  man 
at  all  acquainted  with  mechanics,  and  who  knew  the  paucity 
of  means  that  existed  on  the  island,  could  for  a  moment 
entertain  the  idle  expectation  that  seemed  to  have  got  into 
the  Vineyard-master's  mind,  unless  subject  to  a  species  of 
one-idea  infatuation.  This  infatuation,  however,  existed 
not  only  in  Daggett's  mind,  but  in  some  degree  in  those 
of  his  men.  It  is  said  that  "  in  a  multitude  of  counsellors 
there  is  wisdom ;"  and  the  axiom  comes  from  an  authority 
too  venerable  to  be  disputed.  But  it  might,  almost  with 
equal  justice,  be  said,  that  "  in  a  multitude  of  counsellors 
there  is  folly;"  for  men  are  quite  as  apt  to  sustain  each 
other  in  the  wrong  as  in  the  right.  The  individual  who 
would  hesitate  about  advancing  his  fallacies  and  mistakes 
with  a  single  voice,  does  not  scruple  to  proclaim  them  on 
29* 


340  THE     SEA    LIONS. 

the  hill-tops,  when  he  finds  other  tongues  to  icpeat  hia 
errors.  Divine  wisdom,  foreseeing  this  consequence  of 
human  weakness,  has  provided  a  church-catholic,  and  pro 
ceeding  directly  from  its  Great  Head  on  earth,  as  the  repo 
sitory  of  those  principles,  facts,  and  laws,  that  it  has  deemed 
essential  to  the  furtherance  of  its  own  scheme  of  moral 
government  on  earth ;  and  yet  we  see  audacious  imitators 
starting  up  on  every  side,  presuming  in  their  ignorance, 
longing  in  their  ambition,  and  envious  in  these  longings, 
who  do  not  scruple  to  shout  out  upon  the  house-tops 
crudities  over  which  knowledge  wonders  as  it  smiles,  and 
humility  weeps  as  it  wonders.  Such  is  man,  when  sustained 
by  his  fellows,  in  every  interest  of  life;  from  religion,  the 
highest  of  all,  down  to  the  most  insignificant  of  his  tem 
poral  concerns. 

In  this  spirit  did  Daggett  and  his  crew  now  feel  and  act. 
Roswell  had  early  seen,  with  regret,  that  something  like  a 
feeling  of  party  was  getting  up  among  the  Vineyarders, 
who  had  all  along  regarded  the  better  fortune  of  their 
neighbours  with  an  ill-concealed  jealousy.  Ever  since  the 
shipwreck,  however,  this  rivalry  had  taken  a  new  and  even 
less  pleasant  aspect.  It  was  slightly  hostile,  and  remarks 
had  been  occasionally  made  that  sounded  equivocally ;  as 
if  the  Vineyarders  had  an  intention  of  separating  from  the 
other  crew,  and  of  living  by  themselves.  It  is  probable, 
however,  that  all  this  was  the  fruit  of  disappointment ;  and 
that,  at  the  bottom,  nothing  very  serious  was  in  contempla 
tion.  Daggett  had  permitted  his  people  to  aid  in  transport 
ing  most  of  the  stores  to  the  house;  though  a  considerable 
supply  had  been  left  in  the  wreck.  This  last  arrangement 
was  made  seemingly  without  any  hostile  design,  but  rather 
in  furtherance  of  a  plan  to  pass  as  much  time  as  circum 
stances  would  allow,  on  board  the  stranded  vessel.  There 
was,  in  truth,  a  certain  convenience  in  this  scheme,  that 
commended  it  to  the  good  sense  of  all.  So  long  as  any 
portion  of  the  Vineyarders  could  be  made  comfortable  in 
the  wreck,  it  was  best  they  should  remain  there;  for  it 
saved  the  labour  of  transporting  all  the  provisions,  and 
made  more  room  to  circulate  in  and  about  the  house.  The 
necessity  of  putting  so  many  casks,  barrels  and  boxes  with 
in  doors,  had  materially  circumscribed  the  limits ;  and  space 


THE     SEA     LIONS.  341 

was  a  great  desideratum  for  several  reasons,  health  in  par 
ticular. 

Roswell  was  glad,  therefore,  when  any  of  the  Vineyarders 
expressed  a  wish  to  go  to  the  wreck,  and  to  pass  a  few  days 
there.  With  a  view  to  encourage  this  disposition,  as  well 
as  to  ascertain  how  those  fared  who  chose  that  abode,  he 
paid  Daggett  a  visit,  and  passed  a  night  or  two  himself  in 
the  cabin  of  the  craft.  This  experiment  told  him  that  it 
was  very  possible  to  exist  there  when  the  thermometer  stood 
at  zero;  but,  how  it  would  do  when  ranging  a  great  deal 
lower,  he  had  his  doubts.  The  cabin  was  small,  and  a  very 
moderate  fire  in  the  camboose  served  to  keep  it  reasonably 
warm  ;  though  Daggett,  at  all  times  a  reasonable  and  rea 
soning  man,  when  the  "root  of  all  evil"  did  not  sorely  be 
set  him,  came  fully  into  his  own  views  as  to  the  necessity 
of  husbanding  the  fuel,  and  of  hardening  the  men.  None 
of  that  close  stewing  over  stoves,  which  is  so  common  in 
America,  and  which  causes  one-half  of  the  winter  diseases 
of  the  climate,  was  tolerated  in  either  gang.  Daggett  saw 
the  prudence  of  Roswell's,  or  rather  of  Stimson's  system, 
and  fell  into  it  freely,  and  with  hearty  good-will.  It  was 
during  Gardiner's  visit  to  the  wreck  that  our  two  masters 
talkecf  over  their  plans  for  the  winter,  while  taking  their 
exercise  on  the  schooner's  deck,  each  well  muffled  up,  to 
prevent  the  frost  from  taking  hold  of  the  more  exposed 
parts.  Every  one  had  a  seal-skin  cap,  made  in  a  way  to 
protect  the  ears  and  most  of  the  free;  and  our  two  masters 
were  thus  provided,  in  common  with  their  men. 

"  I  suppose  that  we  are  to  consider  this  as  pleasant  win 
ter  weather,"  Roswell  remarked,  "  the  thermometer  being 
down  only  at  zero.  Stimson  tells  me  that  even  at  Orange 
Harbour,  the  season  he  was  there,  they  paid  out  mercury 
until  it  all  got  into  the  ball.  A  month  or  two  hence,  we 
may  look  out  for  the  season  of  frosts,  as  the  Injins  call  it. 
You  will  hardly  think  of  staying  out  here,  when  the  really 
hard  weather  sets  in." 

"  I  do  not  believe  we  shall  feel  the  cold  much  more  than 
we  do  now.  This  daily  washing  is  a  capital  stove;  for  1 
find  all  hands  say  that,  when  it  is  once  over,  they  feel  like 
new  men.  As  for  me,  I  shall  stick  by  my  craft  while  there 
is  a  timber  lef*  in  her  to  float !" 


342  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

Roswell  thought  how  absurd  it  was  to  cling  thus  to  a 
useless  mass  of  wood,  and  iron,  and  copper ;  but  he  said 
nothing  on  that  subject. 

"  I  am  now  sorry  that  we  took  over  to  the  house  so  many 
of  our  supplies/'  Daggett  continued,  after  a  short  pause. 
"  I  am  afraid  that  many  of  them  will  have  to  be  brought 
back  again." 

"  That  would  hardly  quit  cost,  Daggett ;  it  would  be 
better  to  come  over  and  pass  the  heel  of  the  winter  with 
us,  when  the  supplies  get  to  be  short  here.  As  we  eat,  we 
make  room  in  the  hut,  you  know ;  and  you  will  be  so  much 
the  more  comfortable.  An  empty  pork-barrel  was  broken 
up  for  the  camboose  yesterday  morning." 

"  We  shall  see  —  we  shall  see,  Gar'ner.  My  men  have 
got  a  notion  that  your  people  intend  to  break  up  this 
schooner  for  fuel,  should  they  not  keep  an  anchor-watch 
aboard  her." 

"Anchor-watch  !"  repeated  Roswell,  smiling.  "  It  is 
well  named — if  there  ever  was  an  anchor-watch,  you  keep 
it  here;  for  no  ground-tackle  will  ever  hold  like  this." 

"  We  still  think  the  schooner  may  be  got  off,"  Daggett 
said,  regarding  his  companion  inquiringly. 

While  the  Vineyard-man  had  a  certain  distrust  of  his 
brother-master,  he  had  also  a  high  respect  for  his  fair-deal 
ing  propensities,  and  a  strong  disposition  to  put  confidence 
in  his  good  faith.  The  look  that  he  now  gave  was,  if  pos 
sible,  to  read  the  real  opinion  of  the  other,  in  a  countenance 
that  seldom  deceived. 

"  I  shall  be  grateful  to  God,  Captain  Daggett,"  returned 
Roswell,  after  a  short  pause,  "  if  we  get  through  the  long 
winter  of  this  latitude,  without  burning  too  much  of  both 
craft,  than  will  be  for  our  good.  Surely  it  were  better  to 
begin  on  that  which  is  in  the  least  serviceable  condition?" 

"  I  have  thought  this  matter  over,  Gar'ner,  with  all  my 
mind — have  dreamt  of  it — slept  on  it — had  it  before  me  at 
all  hours,  and  in  all  weathers;  and,  look  at  it  as  I  will,  it 
is  full  of  difficulties.  Will  you  agree  to  take  in  a  half-cargo 
of  my  skins  and  iles  next  season,  and  make  in  all  respects 
a  joint  v'y'ge  of  it,  from  home,  home  ag'in,  if  we  '11  consent 
to  let  this  craft  be  burned  ?" 

"It  exceeds  my  power  to  make  any  such  bargain.     1 


THE     SEA    LIONS.  343 

have  an  owner  who  looks  sharply  after  his  property,  and 
my  crew  are  upon  lays,  like  the  people  of  all  sealers.  You 
ask  too  much ;  and  you  forget  that,  should  I  assume  the 
same  power  over  my  own  craft,  as  you  still  claim  in  this 
wreck,  you  might  never  find  the  means  of  getting  away 
from  the  group  at  all.  We  are  not  obliged  to  receive  you 
on  board  our  schooner." 

"  I  know  you  think,  Gar'ner,  that  it  will  be  impossible 
for  us  ever  to  get  our  craft  off;  but  you  overlook  one  thing 
that  we  may  do — what  is  there  to  prevent  our  breaking  her 
up,  and  of  using  the  materials  to  make  a  smaller  vessel ; 
one  of  sixty  tons  say  —  in  which  we  might  get  home,  be 
sides  taking  most  of  our  skins?" 

"I  will  not  say  that  will  be  impossible;  but  I  do  say  it 
will  be  very  difficult.  It  would  be  wiser  for  you,  in  my 
judgment,  to  leave  your  cargo  in  the  house,  under  the 
keeping  of  a  few  hands  if  you  see  fit,  and  go  off  with  me. 
I  will  land  you  at  Rio,  where  you  can  almost  always  find 
some  small  American  craft  to  come  south  in,  and  pick  up 
your  leavings.  If  you  choose  that  the  men  left  behind 
should  amuse  themselves  in  your  absence,  by  building  a 
small  craft,  I  am  certain  they  will  meet  with  no  opposition 
from  me.  There  is  but  one  place  where  a  vessel  can  be 
launched,  and  that  is  the  spot  in  the  cove  where  we  beached 
your  schooner.  There  it  might  possibly  be  done,  though 
I  think  not  without  a  great  deal  of  trouble,  and  possibly  not 
without  more  means  than  are  to  be  picked  up  along  shore 
in  this  group.  But  there  is  a  very  important  fact  that  you 
overlook,  Daggett,  which  it  may  be  as  well  to  mention 
here,  as  to  delay  it.  Your  craft,  or  mine,  must  be  used  as 
fuel  this  winter,  or  we  shall  freeze  to  death  to  a  man.  I 
have  made  the  calculations  closely ;  and,  certain  as  our 
existence,  there  is  no  alternative  between  such  a  death  and 
the  use  of  the  fuel  I  have  mentioned." 

"  Not  a  timber  of  mine  shall  be  touched.  I  do  not  be 
lieve  one-half  of  these  stories  about  the  antarctic  winter, 
which  cannot  be  much  worse  than  what  a  body  meets  with 
up  in  the  Bay  of  Fundy." 

"A  winter  in  the  Bay  of  Fundy,  without  fuel,  must  be 
bad  enough ;  but  it  is  a  mere  circumstance  to  one  here.  I 
should  think  that  a  man  who  has  tasted  an  antarctic  sum- 


344  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

mer  and  autumn,  must  get  a  pretty  lively  notion  of  what  is 
to  come  after  them." 

"  The  men  can  keep  in  their  berths  much  of  the  time, 
and  save  wood.  There  are  many  other  ways  of  getting 
through  a  winter  than  burning  a  vessel.  I  shall  never  con 
sent  to  a  stick  of  this  good  craft's  going  into  the  galley-fire 
as  long  as  I  can  see  my  way  clear  to  prevent  it.  I  would 
burn  cargo  before  I  would  burn  my  craft." 

Rosvvell  wondered  at  this  pertinacity ;  but  he  trusted  to 
the  pressure  of  the  coming  season,  and  changed  the  subject. 
Certainly  the  thought  of  breaking  up  his  own  craft  did  not 
cross  his  mind;  though  he  could  see  no  sufficient  objection 
to  the  other  side  of  the  proposition.  As  discussion  was  use 
less,  however,  he  continued  to  converse  with  Daggett  on 
various  practical  subjects,  on  which  his  companion  was 
rational  and  disposed  to  learn. 

It  had  been  ascertained  by  experiment  that  the  water, 
at  a  considerable  depth,  was  essentially  warmer  beneath  the 
ice,  than  at  its  surface.  A  plan  had  been  devised  by  which 
the  lower  currents  of  the  water  could  be  pumped  up  for  the 
purposes  of  the  bath ;  thus  rendering  the  process  far  more 
tolerable  than  it  had  previously  been.  Bathing  in  extremely 
cold  weather,  however,  is  not  as  formidable  a  thing  as  is 
generally  supposed,  the  air  being  at  a  lower  temperature 
than  the  water.  As  the  greatest  importance  was  attached 
to  these  daily  ablutions,  the  subject  was  gone  over  between 
the  two  masters  in  all  its  bearings.  There  were  no  conve 
niences  for  the  operation  at  the  wreck ;  and  this  was  one 
reason  why  Roswell  suggested  that  a  residence  there  ought 
to  be  abandoned.  Daggett  dissented,  and  invited  his  com 
panion  to  take  a  walk  in  his  caverns. 

A  promenade  in  a  succession  of  caves  formed  of  ice, 
with  the  thermometer  at  zero,  would  naturally  strike  one 
as  a  somewhat  chilling  amusement.  Gardiner  did  not  find 
it  so.  He  was  quite  protected  from  the  wind,  which  gives 
so  much  pungency  to  bitter  cold,  rendering  it  insupporta 
ble.  Completely  protected  from  this,  and  warmed  by  the 
exertion  of  clambering  among  the  cakes,  Roswell's  blood 
was  soon  in  a  healthful  glow;  and,  to  own  the  truth,  when 
he  left  the  wreck,  it  was  with  a  much  better  opinion  of  itt 


THE     SEA     LIONS.  345 

as  a  place  of  residence,  than  when  he  had  arrived  to  pay 
his  visit. 

As  there  was  now  nothing  for  the  men  to  do  in  the  way 
of  preparation,  modes  of  amusement  were  devised  that 
might  unite  activity  of  body  with  that  of  the  mind.  The 
snows  ceased  to  fall  as  the  season  advanced ;  and  there 
were  but  few  places  on  which  heavy  burthens  might  not 
have  been  transported  over  their  crusts.  It  was,  indeed, 
easier  moving  about  on  the  surface  of  the  frozen  snow, 
than  it  had  been  on  the  naked  rocks ;  the  latter  offering 
obstacles  that  no  longer  showed  themselves.  Sliding  down 
the  declivities,  and  even  skating,  were  practised;  few 
northern  Americans  being  ignorant  of  the  latter  art.  Va 
rious  other  sources  of  amusement  were  resorted  to ;  but  it 
was  found,  generally,  that  very  little  exercise  in  the  open 
air  exhausted  the  frame,  and  that  a  great  difficulty  of 
breathing  occurred.  Still,  it  was  thought  necessary  to 
health  that  the  men  should  remain  as  much  as  possible  out 
of  the  crowded  house ;  and  various  projects  were  adopted 
to  keep  up  the  vital  warmth  while  exposed.  Ere  the  month 
of  July  had  passed,  which  corresponds  to  our  January,  it 
had  been  found  expedient  to  make  dresses  of  skins;  for 
which  fortunately  the  materials  abounded. 

As  the  season  advanced,  the  idea  of  preserving  more 
than  the  lives  of  his  men  was  gradually  abandoned  by  Gar 
diner  ;  though  Daggett  still  clung  to  his  wreck,  and  actually 
had  wood  transported  back  to  it,  that  he  might  stay  as  much 
as  possible  near  his  property.  There  was  no  longer  any 
thawing,  though  there  were  very  material  gradations  in  the 
intensity  of  the  frosts.  Occasionally,  it  was  quite  possible 
to  remain  in  the  open  air  an  hour  or  two  at  a  time;  then, 
again,  there  were  days  in  which  it  exceeded  the  powers  of 
human  endurance  to  remain  more  than  a  few  minutes  re 
moved  to  any  distance  from  heat  artificially  procured.  On 
the  whole,  however,  it  was  found  that  the  comparatively 
moderate  weather  predominated  ;  and  it  was  rare  indeed 
that  all  the  people  did  not  pursue  their  avocations  and 
amusements  outside,  at  what  was  called  the  middle  of  the 
day. 

And  what  a  meridian  it  was!  The  shortest  day  had 
passed  some  time,  when  Roswell  and  Stimson  were  walk- 


346  THE     SEA    LIONS. 

ing  together  on  the  terrace,  then,  as  usual,  as  clear  from 
snow  as  if  swept  by  a  broom ;  but  otherwise  wearing  the 
aspect  of  interminable  winter,  in  common  with  all  around 
it.  They  were  conversing,  as  had  been  much  their  wont 
of  late,  and  were  watching  the  passage  of  the  sun  as  he 
stole  along  the  northern  horizon ;  even  at  high  noon  rising 
but  a  very  few  degrees  above  it ! 

"  It  has  a  cold  look,  sir,  but  it  does  give  out  some  heat," 
said  Stephen,  as  he  faced  the  luminary,  in  one  of  his  turns. 
"  I  can  feel  a  little  warmth  from  it  just  now,  sheltered  us 
we  are  here  under  the  cliffs,  and  with  a  back-ground  of 
naked  rock  to  throw  back  what  reaches  us.  To  me,  all 
these  changes  in  the  movements  of  the  sun  seem  very 
strange,  Captain  Gar'ner ;  but  I  know  I  'm  ignorant,  and 
that  others  may  well  know  all  about  what  I  do  not  under 
stand." 

Here  Gardiner  undertook  to  explain  the  phenomena  that 
have  been  slightly  treated  on  in  our  own  pages.  There  are 
few  Americans  so  ignorant  as  not  to  be  fully  aware  that  the 
sun  has  no  sensible  motion,  or  any  motion  that  has  an  ap- 
narent  influence  on  our  own  planet;  but  fewer  still  clearly 
comprehend  the  reasons  of  those  very  changes  that  are  oc 
curring  constantly  before  their  eyes.  We  cannot  say  that 
Captain  Gardiner  succeeded  very  well  in  his  undertaking, 
though  he  imprinted  on  the  old  boat-steerer's  mind  the 
fact  that  the  sun  would  not  be  seen  at  all  were  they  only  a 
few  degrees  farther  south  than  they  actually  were. 

"And  now,  sir,  I  suppose  he'll  get  higher  and  higher 
every  day,"  put  in  Stephen,  "  until  he  comes  quite  up  above 
our  heads?" 

"Not  exactly  that  at  noon;  though  abeam,  as  it  might 
be,  mornings  and  evenings." 

"  Still,  the  coldest  of  our  weather  is  yet  to  come,  or  1 
have  no  exper'ence  in  such  things.  Why  does  not  the  heat 
come  back  with  the  sun  —  or  what  seems  to  be  the  sun 
coming  back?  though,  as  you  tell  me,  Captain  Gar'ner, 
it's  only  the  'arth  sheering  this-a-way  and  that-a-way  in  her 
course." 

"  One  may  well  ask  such  a  question — but  cold  produces 
cold,  and  it  takes  time  to  wear  it  out.  February  is  com 
monly  the  coldest  month  in  the  year,  even  in  America ; 


THE     SEA     LIONS.  347 

though  days  occur  in  other  months  that  may  be  colder  than 
any  one  in  February.  March,  and  even  April,  are  months 
I  dread  here;  and  that  so  much  the  more,  Stephen,  because 
our  fuel  goes  a  good  deal  faster  than  I  could  wish." 

"  What  you  say  is  very  true,  sir.  Still,  the  people  must 
have  fire.  I  turned  out  this  morning,  while  all  hands  were 
still  in  their  berths,  and  looked  to  the  stove,  and  it  was  as 
much  as  human  natur'  could  bear  to  be  about  without  my 
cap  and  skin-covering;  though  in-doors  the  whole  time. 
If  the  weather  goes  on  as  it  has  begun,  we  shall  have  to 
keep  a  watch  at  the  stove ;  nor  do  I  think  one  stove  will 
answer  us  much  longer.  We  shall  want  another  in  the 
sleeping-room." 

"  Heaven  knows  where  the  wood  is  to  come  from !  Un 
less  Captain  Daggett  gives  up  the  wreck,  we  shall  certainly 
be  out  long  before  the  mild  season  returns." 

"  We  must  keep  ourselves  warm,  sir,  by  reading  the 
bible,"  answered  Stimson,  smiling ;  though  the  glance  he 
cast  at  his  officer  was  earnest  and  anxious.  "  You  must 
not  forget,  Captain  Gar'ner,  that  you  've  promised  one  who 
is  praying  for  you  daily,  to  go  through  the  chapters  she  has 
marked,  and  give  the  matter  a  patient  and  attentive  thought. 
No  sealin',  sir,  can  be  half  as  important  as  this  reading  of 
the  good  book  in  the  right  spirit." 

"  So  you  believe  that  Jesus  was  the  Son  of  God!"  ex 
claimed  Roswell,  half  inquiringly,  and  half  in  a  modified 
sort  of  levity. 

"As  much  as  I  believe  that  we  are  here,  sir.  I  wish  1 
was  half  as  certain  of  our  ever  getting  away." 

"  What  has  caused  you  to  believe  this,  Stimson?—  rea 
son,  or  the  talk  of  your  mother  and  of  the  parson  ?" 

"  My  mother  died  afore  I  could  listen  to  her  talk,  sir: 
and  very  little  have  I  had  to  do  with  parsons,  for  the  want 
of  being  where  they  are  to  be  found.  Faith  tells  me  to 
believe  this;  and  Faith  comes  from  God." 

"And  I  could  believe  it,  too,  were  Faith  imparted  to  me 
from  the  same  source.  As  it  is,  I  fear  I  shall  never  believe 
in  what  appears  to  me  to  be  an  impossibility." 

Then  followed  a  long  discussion,  in  which  ingenuity,  con 
siderable  command  of  language,  human  pride  and  worldly 
sentiments,  contended  xvith  that  clear,  intuitive,  deep  con- 
30 


348  THE     SEA    LIONS. 

viction,  which  it  is  the  pleasure  of  the  Deity  often  to  bestott 
on  those  who  would  otherwise  seem  to  be  unfitted  to  be 
come  the  repositories  of  so  great  a  gift.  As  we  shall  have 
to  deal  with  this  part  of  our  subject  more  particularly  here 
after,  we  shall  not  enlarge  on  it  here;  but  pursue  the  nar 
rative  as  it  is  connected  with  the  advance  of  the  season, 
and  the  influence  the  latter  exerted  over  the  whole  party 
of  the  lost  sealers 


CHAPTER  XXY. 

"  Beyond  the  Jewish  ruler,  banded  close, 
A  company  full  glorious,  I  saw 
The  twelve  apostles  stand.     O,  with  what  looks 
Of  ravishment  and  joy,  what  rapturous  tears; 
What  hearts  of  ecstacy,  they  gazed  again 

On  their  beloved  Master" 

Hillhouse's  Judgment. 

IT  has  become  necessary  to  advance  the  season  to  the 
beginning  of  the  month  of  October,  which  corresponds  to 
our  own  April.  In  a  temperate  climate,  this  would  mark 
the  opening  of  spring ;  and  the  reviving  hopes  of  a  new  and 
genial  season  would  find  a  place  in  every  bosom.  Not  so 
at  Sealer's  Land.  So  long  as  the  winter  was  at  its  height, 
and  the  clear,  steady  cold  continued,  by  falling  into  a  sys 
tem  so  prepared  as  to  meet  the  wants  of  such  a  region, 
matters  had  gone  on  regularly,  if  not  with  comfort;  and, 
as  yet,  the  personal  disasters  were  confined  to  a  few  frozen 
cheeks  and  noses,  the  results  of  carelessness  and  wanton 
exposure,  rather  than  of  absolute  necessity.  But  one  who 
had  seen  the  place  in  July,  and  who  examined  it  now, 
would  find  many  marks  of  change,  not  to  say  of  deterio 
ration. 

In  the  first  place,  a  vast  deal  of  snow  had  fallen;  fallen, 
indeed,  to  such  a  degree,  as  even  to  cover  the  terrace, 
block  up  the  path  that  communicated  with  the  wreck,  and 
nearly  to  smother  the  house  and  all  around  it.  The  winds 
were  high  and  piercing,  rendering  the  cold  doubly  pene- 


THE     SEA     LIONS.  349 

trating.  The  thermometer  now  varied  essentially,  some 
times  rising  considerably  above  zero,  though  oftener  falling 
far  below  it.  There  had  been  many  storms  in  September, 
and  October  was  opening  with  a  most  blustering  and  wintry 
aspect.  In  one  sense,  however,  the  character  of  the  season 
had  changed ;  the  dry,  equal  cold,  that  was  generally  sup 
portable,  having  been  succeeded  by  tempests  that  were 
sometimes  a  little  moist,  but  oftener  of  intense  frigidity. 
Of  course  the  equinox  was  past,  and  there  were  more  than 
twelve  hours  of  sun.  The  great  luminary  showed  himself 
well  above  the  northern  horizon ;  and  though  his  circuit 
described  an  arch  that  did  not  promise  soon  to  bring  him 
near  the  zenith  at  meridian,  it  was  a  circuit  that  seemed 
about  to  enclose  Sealer's  Land,  by  carrying  the  orb  of  day 
so  far  south,  morning  and  evening,  as  to  give  it  an  air  of 
travelling  round  the  spot. 

These  changes  had  not  occurred  without  suffering  and 
danger.  Enormous  icicles  were  suspended  from  the  roof 
of  the  house,  reaching  to  the  ground,  the  third  and  fourth 
successions  of  these  signs  of  heat  and  cold  united,  the 
earlier  formations  having  been  knocked  down  and  thrown 
away.  Mountains  of  drifted  snow  were  to  be  seen  in  places, 
all  along  the  shore;  and  wreaths  that  threatened  fearful 
avalanches  were  suspended  from  the  cliffs,  waiting  only  for 
the  increase  of  the  warmth,  to  come  down  upon  the  rocks 
beneath.  Once  already  had  one  of  these  masses  fallen  on 
the  wreck ;  and  the  Oyster  Pond  men  had  been  busy  for  a 
week  digging  into  the  pile,  in  order  to  go  to  the  rescue  of 
the  Vineyarders.  There  was  much  generosity  and  charita 
ble  feeling  displayed  in  this  act ;  for,  owing  to  the  obstinate 
adherence  of  Daggett  and  his  people  to  what  they  deemed 
their  rights,  Roswell  had  finally  been  compelled  to  cut  to 
pieces  the  upper  works  of  his  own  schooner  to  obtain  fuel 
that  might  prevent  his  own  party  from  freezing  to  death. 
The  position  of  the  Sea  Lion  of  Oyster  Pond  was  to  be 
traced  only  by  a  high  mound  of  snow,  which  had  been 
arrested  by  the  obstacle  she  presented  to  its  drift;  but  her 
bulwarks,  planks,  deck,  top-timbers,  stern-frame — in  short, 
nearly  all  of  the  vessel  above  water,  had  actually  been  taken 
to  pieces,  and  carried  within  the  covering  of  the  verandah 
mentioned,  in  readiness  for  the  stoves ! 


350  THE     SEA    LIONS. 

To  render  the  obstinacy  of  the  other  crew  more  appa 
rent,  Daggett  had  been  obliged  to  do  the  same !  Much  of 
his  beloved  craft  had  already  disappeared  in  the  camboose 
and  more  was  likely  to  follow.  This  compelled  destruction 
however,  rather  increased  than  lessened  his  pertinacity 
He  clung  to  the  last  chip;  and  no  terms  of  compromise 
would  he  now  listen  to  at  all.  The  stranded  wreck  was 
his,  and  his  people's ;  while  the  other  wreck  belonged  to 
the  men  from  Oyster  Pond.  Let  each  party  act  for  itself, 
and  take  care  of  its  own.  Such  were  his  expressed  opinions, 
and  on  them  he  acted. 

This  state  of  things  had  not  been  brought  about  in  a 
day.  Months  had  passed;  Roswell  had  seen  his  last  billet 
of  wood  put  in  the  camboose ;  had  tried  various  experiments 
for  producing  heat  by  means  of  oil,  which  so  far  succeeded 
as  to  enable  the  ordinary  boiling  to  be  done,  thereby  saving 
wood;  but,  when  a  cold  turn  set  in,  it  was  quickly  found 
that  the  schooner  must  go,  or  all  hands  perish.  When  this 
decree  went  forth,  every  one  understood  that  the  final  pre 
servation  of  the  party  depended  on  that  of  the  boats.  For 
one  entire  day  the  question  had  been  up  in  general  council, 
whether  or  not  the  two  whale-boats  should  be  burnt,  with 
their  oars  and  appurtenances,  before  the  attack  was  made 
on  the  schooner  itself.  Stimson  settled  this  point,  as  he 
did  so  many  others,  Roswell  listening  to  all  he  said  with  a 
constantly  increasing  attention. 

"  If  we  burn  the  boats  first,"  said  the  boat-steerer,  "  and 
then  have  to  come  to  the  schooner  a'ter  all,  how  are  we 
ever  to  get  away  from  this  group  ?  Them  boats  wouldn't 
last  us  a  week,  even  in  our  best  weather;  but  they  may 
answer  to  take  us  to  some  Christian  land,  when  every  rib 
and  splinter  of  the  Sea  Lion  is  turned  into  ashes.  I  would 
begin  on  the  upper  works  of  the  schooner  first,  Captain 
Gar'ner.  resarvin'  the  spars,  though  they  would  burn  the 
freest.  Then  I  would  saw  away  the  top-timbers,  beams, 
decks,  transoms,  and  everything  down  within  a  foot  of  the 
water ;  but  I  wouldn't  touch  anything  below  the  copper, 
for  this  here  reason :  unless  Captain  Daggett  sets  to  work 
on  his  craft  and  burns  her  up  altogether,  we  may  find 
mater'als  enough  in  the  spring  to  deck  over  ag'in  the  poor 
thing  down  there  in  the  cove,  and  fit  her  out  a'ter  a  fashion 


THE     SEA     LIONS.  351 

and  make  much  better  weather  of  it  in  her  than  in  our 
boats.  That's  my  opinion,  sir." 

It  was  decided  that  this  line  of  conduct  should  be  pur 
sued.  The  upper  works  of  the  schooner  were  all  taken  out 
of  her  as  soon  as  the  weather  permitted,  and  the  wood  was 
carried  up  and  stored  in  the  house.  Even  with  this  supply, 
it  was  soon  seen  that  great  economy  was  to  be  used,  and 
that  there  might  be  the  necessity  of  getting  at  the  vessel's 
bottom.  As  for  the  schooner,  as  the  people  still  affection 
ately  called  the  hull,  or  what  was  left  of  the  hull,  everything 
had  been  taken  out  of  her.  The  frozen  oil  was  carried  up 
to  the  house  in  chunks,  and  used  for  fuel  and  lights.  A 
good  deal  of  heat  was  obtained  by  making  large  wicks  of 
canvass,  and  placing  them  in  vessels  that  contained  oil ; 
though  it  was  very  far  from  sufficing  to  keep  life  in  the 
men  during  the  hardest  of  the  weather.  The  utmost 
economy  in  the  use  of  the  fuel  that  had  been  so  dearly  ob 
tained,  was  still  deemed  all-essential  to  eventual  preserva 
tion.  Happily,  the  season  advanced  all  this  time,  and  the 
month  of  October  was  reached.  The  intercourse  between 
the  crews  had  by  no  means  been  great  during  the  two  so 
lemn  and  critical  months  that  were  just  past.  A  few  visits 
had  been  exchanged  at  noon-day,  and  when  the  thermome 
ter  was  a  little  above  zero;  but  the  snow  was  filling  the 
path,  and  as  yet  there  were  no  thaws  to  produce  a  crust  on 
which  the  men  might  walk. 

About  a  month  previously  to  the  precise  time  to  which 
it  is  our  intention  now  to  advance  the  more  regular  action 
of  the  legend,  Macy  had  come  over  to  the  house,  attended 
by  one  man,  with  a  proposal  on  the  part  of  Daggett  for  the 
two  crews  to  occupy  his  craft,  as  he  still  persisted  in  calling 
the  wreck,  and  of  using  the  house  as  fuel.  This  was  pre 
viously  to  beginning  to  break  up  either  vessel.  Gardiner 
had  thought  of  this  plan  in  connection  with  his  own 
schooner,  a  scheme  that  would  have  been  much  more  fea 
sible  than  that  now  proposed,  on  account  of  the  difference 
in  distance ;  but  it  had  soon  been  abandoned.  All  the 
material  of  the  building  was  of  pine,  and  that  well  season 
ed ;  a  wood  that  burns  like  tinder.  No  doubt  there  would 
have  been  a  tolerably  comfortable  fortnight  or  three  weeks 
30  * 


352  THE    SEA     LIONS. 

by  making  these  sacrifices ;  then  would  have  come  certain 
destruction. 

As  to  the  proposal  of  Daggett,  there  were  many  objec 
tions  to  it.  A  want  of  room  would  be  one;  want  of  pro 
visions  another;  and  there  would  be  the  necessity  of  trans- 
porting  stores,  bedding,  and  a  hundred  things  that  were 
almost  as  necessary  to  the  people  as  warmth ;  and  which 
indeed  contributed  largely  to  their  warmth.  In  addition 
was  the  objection  just  mentioned,  of  the  insufficiency  of 
the  materials  of  the  building;  an  objection  which  was  just 
as  applicable  to  a  residence  in  one  vessel  as  a  residence  in 
the  other.  Of  course  the  proposition  was  declined. 

Macy  remained  a  night  with  the  Oyster  Ponders,  and 
left  the  house  after  breakfast  next  morning;  knowing  that 
Daggett  only  waited  for  his  return  with  a  negative,  to  com 
mence  breaking  up  the  wreck.  The  mate  was  attended  by 
the  seaman,  returning  as  he  had  arrived.  Two  days  later, 
there  having  been  a  slight  yielding  of  the  snow  under  the 
warmth  of  the  noon-day  sun,  and  a  consequent  hardening 
of  its  crust  in  the  succeeding  night,  Roswell  and  Stimson 
undertook  to  return  this  visit,  with  a  view  to  make  a  last 
effort  to  persuade  Daggett  to  quit  the  wreck  and  come  over 
to  the  house  altogether.  When  they  had  got  about  half 
way  between  the  two  places,  they  found  the  body  of  the 
seaman,  stiff,  frozen  hard,  and  dead.  A  quarter  of  a  mile 
further  on,  the  reckless  Macy,  who  it  was  supposed  greatly 
sustained  Daggett  in  his  obstinacy,  was  found  in  precisely 
the  same  state.  Both  had  fallen  in  the  path,  and  stiffened 
under  the  terrible  power  of  the  climate.  It  was  not  with 
out  difficulty  that  Roswell  reached  the  wreck,  and  reported 
what  he  had  seen.  Even  this  terrible  admonition  did  not 
change  Daggett's  purpose.  He  had  begun  to  burn  his 
vessel,  for  there  was  now  no  alternative ;  but  he  was  doing 
it  on  a  system  which,  as  he  explained  it  to  Roswell,  was 
not  only  to  leave  him  materials  with  which  to  construct  a 
smaller  craft  in  the  spring,  but  which  would  allow  of  his 
inhabiting  the  steerage  and  cabin  as  long  as  he  pleased. 

In  some  respects  the  wreck  certainly  had  its  advantages 
over  the  house.  There  was  more  room  for  exercise,  the 
caverns  of  the  ice  being  extensive,  while  they  completely 
excluded  the  wind,  which  was  now  the  great  danger  of  the 


THE     SEA     LIONS.  353 

season.  It  was  doubtless  owing  to  the  wind  that  Macy  and 
his  companion  had  perished.  As  the  spring  approached, 
these  winds  increased  in  violence ;  though  there  had  been 
slight  symptoms  of  their  coming  more  blandly,  even  at  the 
time  when  their  colder  currents  were  really  frightful. 

A  whole  month  succeeded  this  visit  of  Rosvvell's,  during 
which  there  was  no  intercourse.  It  was  September,  the 
March  of  the  antarctic  circle,  and  the  weather  had  been 
terrific  during  most  of  the  period.  It  was  during  these 
terrible  four  weeks  that  Roswell  completed  his  examination 
of  the  all-important  subject  Mary  had  marked  out  for  him, 
and  which  Stimson  had  so  earnestly  and  so  often  placed 
before  his  mind.  The  sudden  fate  of  Macy  and  his  com 
panion,  the  condition  of  his  crew,  and  all  the  serious  cir 
cumstances  with  which  he  was  surrounded,  conspired  to 
predispose  him  to  inquiry;  and  what  was  equally  important 
in  such  an  investigation,  to  humility.  Man  is  a  very  dif 
ferent  being  in  high  prosperity  from  what  he  becomes  when 
the  blows  of  an  evil  fortune,  or  the  visitations  of  Divine 
Providence  alight  upon  him.  The  skepticism  of  Roswell 
was  more  the  result  of  human  pride,  of  confidence  in  him 
self,  than  in  any  precept  derived  from  others,  or  of  any 
deep  reasoning  process  whatever.  He  conceived  that  the 
theory  of  the  incarnation  of  the  Son  of  God  was  opposed 
to  philosophy  and  experience,  it  is  true ;  and,  thus  far,  he 
may  be  said  to  have  reasoned  in  the  matter,  though  it  was 
in  his  own  way,  and  with  a  very  contracted  view  of  the 
subject ;  but  pride  had  much  more  to  do  with  even  this 
conclusion,  than  a  knowledge  of  physics  or  philosophy.  It 
did  not  comport  with  the  respect  he  entertained  for  his 
own  powers,  to  lend  his  faith  to  an  account  that  conflicted 
with  so  many  of  the  opinions  he  had  formed  on  evidence 
and  practice.  Credulous  women  might  have  their  convic 
tions  on  the  truth  of  this  history,  but  it  was  not  necessary 
for  men  to  be  as  easily  duped.  There  was  something  even 
amiable  and  attractive  in  this  weakness  of  the  other  sex, 
that  would  ill  comport,  however,  with  the  greater  sternness 
of  masculine  judgment.  Roswell,  as  he  once  told  Stimson, 
hesitated  to  believe  in  anything  that  he  could  not  compre 
hend.  His  God  must  be  worshipped  for  the  obvious  truth 
of  his  attributes  and  existence.  He  wished  to  speak  with 


354  THE    SEA     LIONS. 

respect  of  things  that  so  many  worthy  people  reverenced ; 
but  he  could  not  forget  that  Providence  had  made  him  a 
reasoning  creature;  and  his  reason  must  be  convinced. 
Stephen  was  no  great  logician,  as  the  reader  will  easily 
understand ;  but  Newton  possessed  no  clearer  demonstra 
tion  of  any  of  his  problems  than  this  simple,  nay  ignorant, 
man  enjoyed  in  his  religious  faith,  through  the  divine  illu 
mination  it  had  received  in  the  visit  of  the  Holy  Spirit. 

That  gloomy  month,  however,  had  not  been  thrown  away. 
All  the  men  were  disposed  to  be  serious;  and  the  reading 
of  the  bible,  openly  and  aloud,  soon  became  a  favourite 
occupation  with  every  one  of  them.  Although  Roswell's 
reading  was  directed  by  the  marks  of  Mary,  all  of  which 
had  reference  to  those  passages  that  touched  on  the  Divinity 
of  the  Saviour,  he  made  no  comments  that  betrayed  his  in 
credulity.  There  is  a  simple  earnestness  in  the  narrative 
portions  of  the  Gospel  that  commends  its  truth  to  every 
mind,  and  it  had  its  effect  on  that  of  Roswell  Gardiner; 
though  it  failed  to  remove  doubts  that  had  so  long  been 
cherished,  and  which  had  their  existence  in  pride  of  rea 
son,  or  what  passes  for  such,  with  those  who  merely  skim 
the  surface  of  things,  as  they  seem  to  exist  around  them. 

On  the  evening  of  that  particular  day  in  October,  to 
which  we  desire  now  to  advance  the  time,  and  after  the 
most  pleasant  and  cheerful  afternoon  and  sunset  that  any 
on  the  island  had  seen  for  many  months,  Roswell  and  Stim- 
son  ventured  to  continue  their  exercise  on  the  terrace,  then 
again  clear  of  impediments,  even  after  the  day  had  closed. 
The  night  promised  to  be  cold,  but  the  weather  was  not 
yet  so  keen  as  to  drive  them  to  a  shelter.  Both  fancied 
there  was  a  feeling  of  spring  in  the  wind,  which  was  from 
the  north-east,  a  quarter  that  brought  the  blandest  currents 
of  air  into  those  seas,  if  any  air  of  that  region  deserved 
such  a  term  at  all. 

"  It  is  high  time  we  had  some  communications  with  the 
Vineyarders,"  said  Roswell,  as  they  turned  at  that  end  of 
the  terrace  which  was  nearest  to  the  wreck.  "A  full  month 
has  passed  since  we  have  seen  any  of  them,  or  have  heard 
a  syllable  of  their  doings  or  welfare." 

"It's  a  bad  business  this  separation,  Captain  Gar'ner," 
returned  the  boat-steerer ;  "  and  every  hour  makes  it  worse. 


THE     SEA     LIONS.  355 

Think  how  much  good  might  have  been  done  them  young 
men  had  they  only  been  with  us  while  we've  been  reading 
the  book  of  books,  night  and  morning,  sir !" 

"  That  good  book  seems  to  fill  most  of  your  thoughts, 
Stephen — I  wish  I  could  have  your  faith." 

"  It  will  come  in  time,  sir,  if  you  will  only  strive  for  it. 
I  'in  sure  no  heart  could  have  been  harder  than  mine  was, 
until  within  the  last  five  years.  I  was  far  worse  as  a  Chris 
tian,  Captain  Gar'ner,  than  I  consider  you  to  be ;  for  while 
you  have  doubts  consarning  the  Divinity  of  our  Blessed 
Lord,  I  had  no  thought  of  any  one  of  the  Trinity.  My 
only  God  was  the  world ;  and  sich  a  world,  too,  as  a  poor 
sailor  knows.  It  was  being  but  little  better  than  the 
brutes." 

"  Of  all  the  men  with  me,  you  seem  to  be  the  most  con 
tented  and  happy.  I  cannot  say  I  have  seen  even  a  sign 
of  fear  about  you,  when  things  have  been  at  the  worst." 

"  It  would  be  very  ungrateful,  sir,  to  mistrust  a  Provi 
dence  that  has  done  so  much  for  me." 

"  I  devoutly  wish  I  could  believe  with  you  that  Jesus  was 
the  Son  of  God!" 

"  Excuse  me,  Captain  Gar'ner;  it's  jist  because  you  do 
not  devoutly  wish  this,  that  you  do  not  believe.  I  think  I 
understand  the  natur'  of  your  feelin's,  sir.  I  had  some 
sich  once,  myself;  though  it  was  only  in  a  small  way.  I 
was  too  ignorant  to  feel  much  pride  in  my  own  judgment, 
and  soon  gave  up  every  notion  that  went  ag'in  Scriptur'. 
I  own  it  is  not  accordin'  to  natur',  as  we  know  natur',  to 
believe  in  this  doctrine;  but  we  know  too  little  of  a  thou 
sand  things  to  set  up  our  weak  judgments  in  the  very  face 
of  revelation." 

"I  am  quite  willing  to  believe  all  I  can  understand, 
Stephen;  but  I  find  it  difficult  to  credit  accounts  that  are 
irreconcilable  with  all  that  my  experience  has  taught  me  to 
be  true." 

"  They  who  are  of  your  way  of  thinkin',  sir,  do  not  deny 
that  Christ  was  a  good  man  and  a  prophet ;  and  that  the 
apostles  were  good  men  and  prophets;  and  that  they  all 
worked  miracles." 

"This  much  I  am  willing  enough  to  believe;  but  the 
other  doctrine  seems  contrary  to  what  is  possible." 


356  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

"  Yet  you  have  seen,  sir,  that  these  apostles  believed 
what  you  refuse.  One  thing  has  crossed  my  mind,  Captain 
Gar'ner,  which  1  wish  to  say  to  you.  I  know  I  'm  but  an 
ignorant  man,  and  my  idees  may  be  hardly  worth  your  no 
tice  ;  but  sich  as  they  be,  I  want  to  lay  'em  afore  you.  We 
are  told  that  these  apostles  were  all  men  from  a  humble 
class  in  life,  with  little  1'arnin',  chosen,  as  it  might  be,  to 
show  men  that  faith  stood  in  need  of  no  riches,  or  edica- 
tion,  or  worldly  greatness,  of  any  sort.  To  me,  sir,  there 
is  a  wholesome  idee  in  that  one  thing." 

"  It  gives  us  all  a  useful  lesson,  Stephen,  and  has  often 
been  mentioned,  I  believe,  in  connection  with  the  doctrines 
of  Christianity." 

"  Yes,  sir — so  I  should  think ;  though  I  don't  remember 
ever  to  have  heard  it  named  from  any  pulpit.  Well,  Cap 
tain  Gar'ner,  it  does  not  agree  with  our  notions  to  suppose 
that  God  himself,  a  part  of  the  Ruler  and  Master  of  the 
Universe,  should  be  born  of  a  woman,  and  come  among 
sinners  in  order  to  save  'em  from  his  own  just  judgments." 

"  That  is  just  the  difficulty  that  I  have  in  believing  what 
are  called  the  dogmas  of  Christianity  on  that  one  point. 
To  me,  it  has  ever  seemed  the  most  improbable  thing  in 
the  world." 

"  Just  so,  sir  —  I  had  some  sort  of  feelin  of  that  natur' 
myself  once.  When  God,  in  his  goodness,  put  it  into  my 
heart  to  believe,  however,  as  he  was  pleased  to  do  in  a  fit 
of  sickness  from  which  I  never  expected  to  rise,  and  in 
which  I  was  led  to  pray  to  him  for  assistance,  I  began  to 
think  over  all  these  matters  in  my  own  foolish  manner. 
Among  other  things,  I  said  to  myself,  'is  it  likely  that  any 
mortal  man  would  dream  of  calling  Christ  the  Son  of  God, 
unless  it  was  put  into  his  mind  to  say  so?'  Then  cornea 
the  characters  of  them  men,  who  all  admit  were  upright 
and  religious.  How  can  we  suppose  that  they  would  agree 
in  giving  the  same  account  of  sich  a  thing,  unless  what 
they  said  had  been  told  to  them  by  some  tongue  that  they 
believed?" 

Roswell  smiled  at  Stephen's  reasoning,  which  was  not 
without  a  certain  point,  but  which  an  ingenious  man  might 
find  the  means  of  answering  in  various  ways. 

"  There  is  another  thing,  sir,  that  I  've  read  in  a  book," 


THE     SEA     LIONS.  357 

resumed  the  boat-steerer,  "  which  goes  a  great  way  with 
me.  Jesus  allowed  others  to  call  him  the  Son  of  God, 
without  rebuking  them  for  doing  so.  It  does  really  seem 
that  they  who  believe  he  was  a  good  man,  as  I  understand 
is  the  case  with  you,  Captain  Gar'ner,  must  consider  this 
as  a  strong  fact.  We  are  to  remember  what  a  sin  idolatry 
is;  how  much  all  ra'al  worshippers  abhor  it;  and  then  set 
that  feelin'  side  by  side  with  the  fact  that  the  Son  did  not 
think  it  robbery  to  be  called  the  equal  of  the  Father.  To 
me,  that  looks  like  a  proof  that  our  belief  has  a  solid  foun 
dation." 

Roswell  did  not  reply.  He  was  aware  that  it  would  not 
be  just  to  hold  any  creed  responsible  for  the  manner  in 
which  a  person  like  Stimson  defended  it.  Still,  he  was 
struck  with  both  of  this  man's  facts.  The  last,  he  had  often 
met  in  books;  but  the  first  was  new  to  him.  Of  the  two, 
this  novel  idea  of  the  improbability  of  the  apostles'  invent 
ing  that  which  would  seem  to  be  opposed  to  all  men's  no 
tions  and  prejudices,  struck  him  more  forcibly  than  the 
argument  adduced  from  the  acquiescence  of  the  Redeemer 
in  his  own  divinity.  The  last  might  be  subject  to  verbal 
criticism,  and  could  possibly  be  explained  away,  as  he 
imagined ;  but  the  first  appeared  to  be  intimately  incor 
porated  with  the  entire  history  of  Christ's  ministrations  on 
earth.  These  were  the  declarations  of  John  the  Baptist, 
the  simple  and  unpretending  histories  of  the  Gospels,  the 
commentaries  of  St.  Paul,  and  the  venerable  teachings  of 
the  church  through  so  many  centuries  of  varying  degrees 
of  faith  and  contention,  each  and  all  going  to  corroborate 
a  doctrine  that,  in  his  eyes,  had  appeared  to  be  so  repug 
nant  to  philosophy  and  reason.  Wishing  to  be  alone,  Ros 
well  gave  an  order  to  Stimson  to  execute  some  duty  that 
fell  to  his  share,  and  continued  walking  up  and  down  the 
terrace  alone  for  quite  an  hour  longer. 

The  night  was  coming  in  cold  and  still.  It  was  one  of 
those  last  efforts  of  winter  in  which  all  the  terrible  force 
of  the  season  was  concentrated :  and  it  really  appeared  as 
if  nature,  wearied  with  its  struggle  to  return  to  a  more 
genial  temperature,  yielded  in  despair,  and  was  literally 
returning  backwards  through  the  coldest  of  her  months. 
The  moon  was  young,  but  the  stars  gave  forth  a  brightness 


358  THE     SEA     LIONS. 

that  is  rarely  seen,  except  in  the  clear  cold  nights  of  a  high 
latitude.  Each  and  all  of  these  sublime  emblems  of  the 
power  of  God  were  twinkling  like  bright  torches  glowing 
in  space;  and  the  mind  had  only  to  endow  each  with  its 
probable  or  known  dimensions,  its  conjectural  and  reason 
able  uses,  to  form  a  picture  of  the  truest  sublimity  in  which 
man  is  made  to  occupy  his  real  position.  In  this  world, 
where,  in  a  certain  sense,  he  is  master,  where  all  things 
are  apparently  under  his  influence,  if  not  absolutely  subject 
to  his  control ;  where  little  that  is  distinctly  visible  is  to  be 
met  with  that  does  seem  to  be  created  to  meet  his  wants, 
or  to  be  wholly  at  his  disposal,  one  gets  a  mistaken  and 
frequently  a  fatal  notion  of  his  true  place  in  the  scale  of 
the  beings  who  are  intended  to  throng  around  the  footstool 
of  the  Almighty.  As  the  animalcule  of  the  atmospheric 
air  bear  a  proportion  to  things  visible,  so  would  this  throng 
seem  to  bear  a  proportion  to  our  vague  estimates  of  the 
spiritual  hosts.  All  this  Roswell  was  very  capable  of  feel 
ing,  and  in  some  measure  of  appreciating;  and  never  be 
fore  had  he  been  made  so  conscious  of  his  own  insignifi 
cance,  as  he  became  while  looking  on  the  firmament  that 
night,  glowing  with  its  bright  worlds  and  suns,  doubtless 
the  centres  of  other  systems  in  which  distance  swallowed 
up  the  lesser  orbs. 

Almost  every  one  has  heard  or  read  of  that  collection 
of  stars  which  goes  by  the  name  of  the  Southern  Cross. 
The  resemblance  to  the  tree  on  which  Christ  suffered  is 
not  particularly  striking,  though  all  who  navigate  the 
southern  hemisphere  know  it,  and  recognize  it  by  its  im 
puted  appellation.  It  now  attracted  Roswell's  gaze ;  and 
coming  as  it  did  after  so  much  reading,  so  many  conversa 
tions  with  Stephen,  and  addressing  itself  to  one  whose  heart 
was  softened  by  the  fearful  circumstances  that  had  so  long 
environed  the  sealers,  it  is  not  surprising  that  it  brought 
our  young  master  to  meditate  seriously  on  his  true  condi 
tion  in  connection  with  the  atonement  that  he  was  willing 
to  admit  had  been  made  for  him,  in  common  with  all  of 
earth,  at  the  very  moment  he  hesitated  to  believe  that  the 
sufferer  was,  in  any  other  than  a  metaphorical  sense,  the 
Son  of  God. 

It  is  not  our  intention  to  describe  more  of  the  religious 


T  H  E     SEA     LIONS.  359 

feelings  of  Mary  and  her  suitor,  or  to  enter  farther  into 
any  disquisition  on  subjects  of  this  nature,  than  may  be 
absolutely  necessary  to  elucidate  the  facts  of  our  history 
In  order  to  do  the  last  distinctly,  however,  we  shall  endea 
vour  to  make  a  very  brief  analysis  of  the  process  of  reason 
ing,  and  we  may  add  of  feeling  too,  that  was  at  work  in 
Roswell  Gardiner's  mind  and  heart,  as  he  paced  the  terrace 
that  night,  after  Stimson  had  left  him. 

We  suppose  that  a  sense  of  humility  is  the  first  healthful 
symptom  that  shows  itself  in  every  man's  moral  regenera 
tion.  A  meek  appreciation  of  his  own  station  and  character 
disposes  him  to  receive  revelation  with  respect,  and  to  have 
faith  in  things  that  are  not  seen.  Perhaps  no  one  over 
whom  the  sword  of  fate  was  not  actually  suspended  by  a 
hair,  was  ever  better  placed  to  admit  the  lessons  of  humility 
than  was  Roswell  Gardiner  at  that  very  moment.  Modest 
he  always  was,  in  the  ordinary  acceptation  of  the  term,  and 
this  without  professions  or  grimaces;  but  he  had  a  high 
idea  of  the  human  understanding,  and  revolted  at  believing 
that  which  did  violence  to  all  his  experience  and  precon 
ceived  opinions.  This  was  the  weak  spot  in  his  character, 
which  time,  with  an  increasing  knowledge  of  men  and 
things,  or  some  merciful  teaching  of  Divine  Providence, 
could  alone  remove. 

Roswell  certainly  did  not  converse  with  Stimson  in  the 
expectation  of  being  much  instructed  ;  but  the  humble  and 
uneducated  boat-steerer  had  been  at  a  school  that  raises 
the  dullest  intellect  far  above  all  the  inferences  of  philoso 
phy.  He  fiad  faith,  without  which  no  man  is  truly  wise; 
no  man  learned,  in  the  highest  interest  of  his  being.  Under 
the  guidance  of  this  leader,  Stephen  occasionally  threw  out 
an  idea  that  struck  the  mind  of  his  officer  by  its  simplicity 
and  force,  and  helped  to  complete  that  change  for  which 
circumstances,  reading,  and  reflection  had  now  been  many 
months  preparing  the  way.  The  day  preceding  this  walk 
on  the  terrace,  Roswell  observed  to  Stimson  that  he  had 
difficulty  in  believing  in  a  Deity  he  could  not  comprehend; 
meaning  merely  that  his  reason  must  be  satisfied  in  a  doc 
trine  like  that  of  the  incarnation. 

"  Well,  sir,  that's  not  my  feelin',"  answered  Stephen, 
earnestly.    "A  Deity  I  could  understand  would  be  no  God 
31 


360  THE     SEA     LIONS. 

for  me.  Where  there  is  the  same  knowledge,  there  is  too 
much  companionship,  like,  for  worship  and  reverence." 

"  But  we  are  told  that  man  was  created  after  the  image 
of  God." 

"In  his  likeness,  Captain  Gardner  —  with  some  of  the 
Divine  Spirit,  but  not  with  all.  That  makes  him  different 
from  the  brutes,  and  immortal.  I  have  convarsed  with  a 
clergyman  who  thinks  that  the  angels,  and  archangels,  and 
other  heavenly  beings,  are  far  before  even  the  Saints  in 
Heaven,  such  as  have  been  only  men  on  'arth." 

The  idea  of  not  having  a  Deity  that  he  could  not 
comprehend  had  long  been  one  of  Roswell  Gardiner's 
favourite  rules  of  faith.  He  did  not  understand  by  this 
pretending  dogma,  that  he  was,  in  any  respect,  of  capacity 
equal  to  comprehend  with  that  of  the  Divine  Being,  but 
simply  that  he  was  not  to  be  expected  or  required  to  be 
lieve  in  any  theory  which  manifestly  conflicted  with  his 
knowledge  and  experience,  as  both  were  controlled  by  the 
powers  of  induction  he  had  derived  directly  from  his 
Creator.  In  a  word,  his  exception  was  one  of  the  most 
obvious  of  the  suggestions  of  the  pride  of  reason,  and  just 
so  much  in  direct  opposition  to  the  great  law  of  regenera 
tion,  which  has  its  very  gist  in  the  converse  of  this  feeling 
—Faith. 

As  our  young  master  paced  the  terrace  alone,  that  idea 
of  the  necessity  of  the  Creator's  being  incomprehensible  to 
the  created,  recurred  to  him.  The  hour  that  succeeded 
was  probably  the  most  important  in  Roswell  Gardiner's 
life.  So  intense  were  his  feelings,  so  active  the  workings 
of  his  mind,  that  he  was  quite  insensible  to  the  intensity 
of  the  cold ;  and  his  body  keeping  equal  motion  with  his 
thoughts,  if  one  may  so  express  it,  his  frame  actually  set  at 
defiance  a  temperature  that  might  otherwise  have  chilled  it, 
warmly  and  carefully  as  it  was  clad. 

Truly  there  were  many  causes  existing  at  that  time  and 
place,  to  bring  any  man  to  a  just  sense  of  his  real  position 
in  the  scale  of  created  beings.  The  vault  above  Roswell 
was  sparkling  with  orbs  floating  in  space,  most  of  them  far 
more  vast  than  this  earth,  and  each  of  them  doubtless 
having  its  present  or  destined  use.  What  was  that  light, 
so  brilliant  and  pervading  throughout  space,  that  converted 


THE     SEA    LIONS.  361 

each  of  those  masses  of  dark  matter  into  globes  clothed 
with  a  glorious  brightness?  Roswell  had  seen  chemical 
experiments  that  produced  wonderful  illuminations;  but 
faint,  indeed,  were  the  most  glowing  of  those  artificial 
torches,  to  the  floods  of  light  that  came  streaming  out  of 
the  void,  on  missions  of  millions  and  millions  of  miles. 
Who,  and  what  was  the  Dread  Being — dread  in  his  Majesty 
and  Justice,  but  inexhaustible  in  Love  and  Mercy  —  who 
used  these  exceeding  means  as  mere  instruments  of  his 
pleasure?  and  what  was  he  himself,  that  he  should  presume 
to  set  up  his  miserable  pride  of  reason,  in  opposition  to  a 
revelation  supported  by  miracles  that  must  be  admitted  to 
come  through  men  inspired  by  the  Deity,  or  rejected  alto 
gether  ? 

In  this  frame  of  mind  Roswell  was  made  to  see  that 
Christianity  admitted  of  no  half-way  belief;  it  was  all  true, 
or  it  was  wholly  false. 

And  why  should  not  Christ  be  the  Son  of  God,  as  the 
Fathers  of  the  Church  had  perseveringly,  but  so  simply 
proclaimed,  and  as  that  church  had  continued  to  teach  for 
eighteen  centuries?  Roswell  believed  himself  to  have  been 
created  in  the  image  of  God ;  and  his  much-prized  reason 
told  him  that  he  could  perpetuate  himself  in  successors; 
and  that  which  the  Creator  had  given  him  the  power  to 
achieve,  could  he  not  in  his  own  person  perform?  For 
the  first  time,  an  inference  to  the  contrary  seemed  to  be 
illogical. 

Then  the  necessity  for  the  great  expiation  occurred  to 
his  mind.  This  had  always  been  a  stumbling-block  to 
Roswell's  faith.  He  could  not  see  it ;  and  that  which  he 
could  not  see  he  was  indisposed  to  believe.  Here  was  the 
besetting  weakness  of  his  character;  a  weakness  which  did 
not  suffer  him  to  perceive  that  could  he  comprehend  so 
profound  a  mystery,  he  would  be  raised  far  above  that  very 
nature  in  which  he  took  so  much  pride.  As  he  reflected 
on  this  branch  of  the  subject,  a  thousand  mysteries,  physi 
cal  and  moral,  floated  before  his  mind ;  and  he  became 
aware  of  the  little  probability  that  he  should  have  been 
endowed  with  the  faculties  to  comprehend  this,  the  greatest 
of  them  all.  Had  not  science  gradually  discovered  the 
chemical  processes  by  which  gases  could  be  concentrated 


362  THE     SEA     LIONS, 

and  disengaged,  the  formation  of  one  of  those  gfittenng 
orbs  above  his  head  would  have  been  quite  as  unintelligible 
a  mystery  to  him,  as  the  incarnation  of  the  Saviour.  The 
fact  was,  that  phenomena  that  were  just  as  mysterious  tc 
the  human  mind  as  any  that  the  dogmas  of  Christianity 
required  to  be  believed,  exist  hourly  before  our  eyes  with 
out  awakening  skepticism,  or  exciting  discussion:  finding 
their  impunity  in  their  familiarity.  Many  of  these  pheno 
mena  were  strictly  incomprehensible  to  human  understand 
ings,  which  could  reason  up  to  a  fountain-head  in  each 
case ;  and  there  it  was  obliged  to  abandon  the  inductive 
process,  purely  for  the  want  of  power  to  grapple  with  the 
premises  which  control  the  whole  demonstration. 

Could  Mary  Pratt  have  known  what  was  going  on  in 
Roswell  Gardiner's  soul  that  night,  her  happiness  would 
have  been  as  boundless  as  her  gratitude  to  God.  She  would 
have  seen  the  barrier  that  had  so  long  interposed  itself  to 
her  wishes  broken  down ;  not  by  any  rude  hand,  but  by  the 
influence  of  those  whisperings  of  the  Divine  Spirit,  which 
open  the  way  to  men  to  fit  themselves  for  the  presence  of 
God. 


CHAPTER  XXVI. 

"Let  winter  come!  let  polar  spirits  sweep 
The  darkening  world,  and  tempest-troubled  deep!" 

CAMPBELL. 

WHILE  the  bosom  of  Roswell  was  thus  warming  with 
the  new-born  faith,  of  which  the  germ  was  just  opening  in 
his  heart,  Stimson  came  out  upon  the  terrace  to  see  what 
had  become  of  his  officer.  It  was  much  past  the  hour  when 
the  men  got  beneath  the  coverings  of  their  mcttresses;  and 
the  honest  boat-steerer,  who  had  performed  the  duty  oa 
which  he  had  been  sent,  was  anxious  about  Roswell's  re 
maining  so  long  in  the  open  air,  on  this  positively  the  se 
verest  night  of  the  whole  season. 

"  You  stand  the  cold  well,  Captain  Gar'ner,"  said  Ste- 


THE    SEA    LIONS.  363 

phen,  as  he  joined  his  officer;  "but  it  might  be  prudent, 
now,  to  get  under  cover." 

"I  do  not  feel  it  cold,  Stephen"  — returned  Roswell  — 
kt  on  the  contrary,  I'm  in  a  pleasant  glow.  My  mind  has 
been  busy,  while  my  frame  has  kept  in  motion.  When  such 
are  the  facts,  the  body  seldom  suffers.  But,  hearken — does 
it  not  seem  that  some  one  is  calling  to  us  from  the  direction 
of  the  wreck  ?" 

The  great  distance  to  which  sounds  are  conveyed  in  in 
tensely  cold  and  clear  weather,  is  a  fact  known  to  most 
persons.  Conversations  in  the  ordinary  tone  had  been 
heard  by  the  sealers  when  the  speakers  were  nearly  a  mile 
off;  and,  on  several  occasions,  attempts  had  been  made  to 
hold  communications,  by  means  of  the  voice,  between  the 
wreck  and  the  hut.  Certain  words  had  been  understood ; 
but  it  was  found  impossible  to  hold  anything  that  could  be 
termed  conversation.  Still,  the  voice  had  been  often  heard, 
and  a  fancy  had  come  over  the  mind  of  Roswell  that  he 
heard  a  cry  like  a  call  for  assistance,  just  as  Stimson  join 
ed  him. 

"  It  is  so  late,  sir,  that  I  should  hardly  think  any  of  the 
Vineyarders  would  be  up,"  observed  the  boat-steerer,  after 
listening  some  little  time  in  the  desire  to  catch  the  sound 
mentioned.  "  Then  it  is  so  cold,  that  most  men  would  like 
to  get  beneath  their  blankets  as  soon  as  they  could." 

"  I  do  not  find  it  so  very  cold,  Stephen.  Have  you  looked 
at  the  thermometer  lately?" 

"  I  gave  it  a  look  in  coming  out,  sir;  and  it  tells  a  terri 
ble  story  to-night!  The  marcury  is  all  down  in  the  ball, 
which  is  like  givin'  the  matter  up,  I  do  suppose,  Captain 
Gar'ner." 

"  'Tis  strange  !  I  do  not  feel  it  so  very  cold  !  The  wind 
seems  to  be  getting  round  to  north-east,  too ;  give  us  enough 
of  that,  and  we  shall  have  a  thaw.  Hark!  there  is  the  cry 
again." 

This  time  there  could  be  no  mistake.  A  human  voice 
had  certainly  been  raised  amid  the  stillness  of  that  almost 
polar  night,  clearly  appealing  to  human  ears,  for  succour. 
The  only  word  heard  or  comprehended  was  that  of  "  help ;" 
one  well  enough  adapted  to  carry  the  sound  far  and  dis 
tinctly.  There  was  a  strain  of  agony  in  the  cry,  as  if  he 
o  1 


364  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

who  made  it  uttered  it  in  despair.  Roswell's  blood  seemed 
to  flow  back  to  his  heart;  never  had  he  before  felt  so  ap 
palling  a  sense  of  the  dependence  of  man  on  a  Divine  Pro 
vidence,  as  at  that  moment. 

"You  heard  it?"  he  said,  inquiringly,  to  Stephen,  after 
an  instant  of  silent  attention,  to  make  sure  that  no  more 
was  to  reach  his  ears  just  then. 

"  Sartain,  sir — no  man  could  mistake  that.  It  was  the 
voice  of  the  nigger,  Joe;  him  that  Captain  Daggett  has  for 
a  cook." 

"  Think  you  so,  Stephen?  The  fellow  has  good  lungs, 
and  they  may  have  set  him  to  call  upon  us  in  their  distress. 
What  can  be  the  nature  of  the  assistance  they  ask  ?" 

"I've  been  thinking  of  that,  Captain  Gar'ner;  and  a 
difficult  p'int  it  is  to  answer.  Food  they  must  have  still ; 
and  was  they  in  want  of  their  rations,  hands  would  have 
been  sent  across  to  get  'em.  They  may  have  let  their  fire 
go  out,  and  be  without  the  means  to  re-light  it.  I  can 
think  of  nothing  else  that  is  likely  to  happen  to  men  so 
sarcumstanced." 

The  last  suggestion  struck  Roswell  as  possible.  From 
the  instant  he  felt  certain  that  he  was  called  on  for  aid,  he 
had  determined  to  proceed  to  the  wreck,  notwithstanding 
the  lateness  of  the  hour,  and  the  intense  severity  of  the 
weather.  As  he  had  intimated  to  Stephen,  he  was  not  at 
all  conscious  how  very  cold  it  was;  exercise  and  the  active 
workings  of  his  mind  having  brought  him  to  an  excellent 
condition  to  resist  the  sternness  of  the  season.  The  appeal 
had  been  so  sudden  and  unexpected,  nowever,  that  he  was 
at  first  somewhat  at  a  loss  how  to  proceed.  This  matter 
was  now  discussed  between  him  and  Stimson,  when  the 
following  plan  was  adopted  : — 

The  mates  were  to  be  called,  and  made  acquainted  with 
what  had  occurred,  and  put  on  their  guard  as  to  what  might 
possibly  be  required  of  them.  It  was  not  thought  necessary 
to  call  any  of  the  rest  of  the  men.  There  was  always  one 
hand  on  the  watch  in  the  house,  whose  duty  it  was  to  look 
to  the  fires,  for  the  double  purpose  of  security  against  a 
conflagration,  and  to  prevent  the  warmth  within  from  sink 
ing  too  near  to  the  cold  without.  It  had  often  occurred  to 
Roswell's  mind  that  a  conflagration  would  prove  quick  de- 


THE    SEA    LIONS.  365 

struction  to  his  party.  In  the  first  place,  most  of  the  pro 
visions  would  be  lost ;  and  it  was  certain  that,  without  a 
covering  and  the  means  of  keeping  warm  within  it,  the 
men  could  not  resist  the  climate  eight-and-forty  hours. 
The  burning  of  the  hut  would  be  certain  death. 

Roswell  took  no  one  with  him  but  Stimson.  Two  were 
as  good  as  a  hundred,  if  all  that  was  asked  were  merely 
the  means  to  re-light  the  fire.  These  means  were  provided, 
and  a  loaded  pistol  was  taken  also,  to  enable  a  signal-shot 
to  be  fired,  should  circumstances  seem  to  require  further 
aid.  One  or  two  modes  of  communicating  leading  facts 
were  concerted,  when  our  hero  and  his  companion  set  forth 
on  their  momentous  journey. 

Taking  the  hour,  the  weather,  and  the  object  before  him 
into  the  account,  Roswell  Gardiner  felt  that  he  was  now 
enlisted  in  the  most  important  undertaking  of  his  whole 
life,  as  he  and  Stephen  shook  hands  with  the  two  mates, 
and  left  the  point.  The  drifts  rendered  a  somewhat  cir 
cuitous  path  necessary  at  first;  but  the  moon  and  stars  shed 
so  much  of  their  radiance  on  the  frozen  covering  of  the 
earth,  that  the  night  was  quite  as  light  as  many  a  London 
day.  Excitement  and  motion  kept  the  blood  of  our  two 
adventurers  in  a  brisk  circulation,  and  prevented  their  be 
coming  immediately  conscious  of  the  chill  intensity  of  the 
cold  to  which  they  were  exposed. 

"  It  is  good  to  think  of  Almighty  God,  and  of  his  many 
marcies,"  said  Stephen,  when  a  short  distance  from  the 
house,  *'  as  a  body  goes  forth  on  an  expedition  as  serious 
as  this.  We  may  not  live  to  reach  the  wrack,  for  it  seems 
to  me  to  grow  colder  and  colder !" 

"  I  wonder  we  hear  no  more  of  the  cries,"  remarked 
Roswell,  who  was  thinking  of  the  distress  he  was  bent  on 
relieving.  "  One  would  think  that  a  man  who  could  call 
so  stoutly  would  give  us  another  cry." 

"A  body  can  never  calcilate  on  a  nigger,"  answered 
Stephen,  who  had  the  popular  American  prejudice  against 
the  caste  that  has  so  long  been  held  in  servitude  in  the 
land.  "  They  call  out  easily,  and  shut  up  oncommon  quick, 
if  there 's  nothin'  gained  by  yelling.  Black  blood  won't 
stand  cold  like  white  blood,  Captain  Gardner,  any  more 
than  white  blood  will  stand  heat  like  black  blood." 


3(55  THE     SEA     LIONS. 

"  1  have  heard  this  before,  Stephen  :  and  it  has  surprised 
me  that  Captain  Daggett's  cook  should  be  the  only  one  of 
that  party -who  seems  to  have  had  any  voice  to-n; 

Stirason  had  a  good  deal  to  say  now,  as  the  two  picked 
their  way  across  the  field  of  snow,  always  walking  on  the 
crust,  which  in  most  places  would  have  upheld  a  loaded 
vehicle:  the  subject  of  his  remarks  being  the  difference 
between  the  two  races,  as  respects  their  ability  to  endure 
hardships.  The  worthy  boat-steerer  had  several  ta!- 
relate  of  cases  in  which  he  had  known  negroes  freeze 
when  whites  have  escaped.  As  the  fact  is  one  pretty  well 
established,  Roswell  listened  complacently  enough,  being 
much  too  earnest  in  pressing  forward  toward  his  object,  to 
debate  any  of  his  companion's  theories  just  then.  It  was 
while  thus  employed  that  Roswell  fancied  he  heard  one 
more  cry,  resembling  those  which  had  brought  him  on  this 
dangerous  undertaking,  on  a  night  so  fearful.  This  time, 
however,  the  cry  was  quite  faint;  and  what  was  not  so 
easily  explained,  it  did  not  appear  to  come  from  the  precise 
direction  in  which  the  wreck  was  known  to  lie,  but  from 
one  that  diverged  considerably  from  that  particular  quarter. 
Of  coarse,  the  officer  mentioned  this  circumstance  to  the 
boat-steerer :  and  the  extraordinary  part  of  the  information 
caused  some  particular  discussion  between  them. 

"  To  me  that  last  call  seemed  to  come  from  up  yonder, 
nearer  to  the  cliffs  than  the  place  where  we  are,  and  not  at 
al!  from  down  there,  near  to  the  sea,  where  the  wrack  is," 
said  Stimson,  in  the  coarse  of  his  remarks.  "  So  sartain 
am  I  of  this,  that  I  feel  anxious  to  change  our  course  a 
little,  to  see  if  it  be  not  possible  that  one  of  the  Vineyarders 
has  got  into  some  difficulty  in  trying  to  come  across  to  us." 

Roswell  had  the  same  desire,  for  he  had  made  the  same 
conjectnre;  though  he  did  not  believe  the  black  would  be 
the  person  chosen  to  be  the  messenger  on  such  an  occa 
sion. 

'•  I  think  Captain  Daggett  would  have  come  himself,  or 
have  sent  one  of  bis  best  men,"  be  observed,  "  in  prefer 
ence  to  trusting  a  negro  with  a  duty  so  important.'7 

*'  We  do  not  know,  sir,  that  it  was  the  nigger  we  heard. 
Misery  makes  much  the  same  cries,  whether  it  comes  from 
the  throat  of  white  or  black.  Let  us  work  upward,  neaore 


THE     SEA     LIONS.  367 

to  the  cliffs,  sir;  I  see  something  dark  on  the  snow,  here 
away,  as  it  might  be  on  our  larboard  bow." 

Rosweli  caught  a  glimpse  of  the  same  object,  ani  thither 
our  adventurers  now  bent  their  steps,  walking  on  the  crust 
without  any  difficulty,  so  long  as  they  kept  out  of  the  drifts, 
One  does  not  find  it  as  easy  to  make  any  physical  effort  in 
an  intensely  cold  atmosphere,  as  he  does  when  the  weather 
is  more  moderate.  This  prevented  Roswell  and  his  com 
panion  from  moving  as  fast  as  they  otherwise  might  have 
done ;  but  they  got  along  with  sufficient  rapidity  to  reach 
the  dark  spot  on  the  snow  in  less  than  five  minutes  after 
they  had  changed  their  course. 

"  You  are  right,  Stephen,"  said  Gardiner,  as  he  came 
up  to  this  speck,  amid  the  immensity  of  the  white  mantle 
that  covered  both  sea  and  land,  far  as  the  eye  could  reach  ; 
"  it  is  the  cook  !  The  poor  fellow  has  given  out  here,  about 
half-way  between  the  two  stations." 

"There  must  be  life  in  him  yet.  sir  —  nigger  as  he  is. 
It 's  not  yet  twenty  minutes  since  he  gave  that  last  cry. 
Help  me  to  turn  him  over,  Captain  Gar'ner,  and  we  will 
rub  him,  and  give  him  a  swallow  of  brandy.  A  little  hot 
coffee,  now.  might  bring  the  life  back  to  his  heart." 

Roswell  complied,  first  firing  his  pistol  as  a  signaJ  to 
those  left  behind.  The  negro  was  not  dead,  but  so  near  it, 
that  a  very  few  more  minutes  would  have  sealed  his  fate. 
The  applications  and  frictions  used  by  Gardiner  and  the 
boat-steerer  had  an  effect.  A  swallow  of  the  brandy  pro 
bably  saved  the  poor  fellow's  life.  While  working  on  his 
patient,  Captain  Gardiner  found  a  piece  of  frozen  pork, 
which,  on  examination,  he  ascertained  had  never  been 
cooked.  It  at  once  explained  the  nature  of  the  calamity 
that  had  befallen  the  crew  of  the  wreck. 

So  intent  were  the  two  on  their  benevolent  duty,  that  a 
party  arrived  from  the  house  in  obedience  to  the  signal,  in 
much  less  time  than  they  could  have  hoped  for.  It  was  led 
by  the  mate,  and  came  provided  with  a  lamp  burning  be 
neath  a  tin  vessel  filled  with  sweetened  coffee.  This  hot 
drink  answered  an  excellent  purpose  with  both  well  and 
sick.  After  a  swallow  or  two,  aided  by  a  vigorous  friction, 
and  closely  surrounded  by  so  many  human  bodies,  the  black 
began  to  revive ;  and  the  sort  of  drowsy  stupor  which  is 


368  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

known  to  precede  death  in  those  who  die  by  freezing, 
having  been  in  a  degree  shaken  off,  he  was  enabled  to 
stand  alone,  and  by  means  of  assistance  to  walk.  The  hot 
coffee  was  of  the  greatest  service,  every  swallow  that  he 
got  down  appearing  to  set  the  engine  of  life  into  new  mo 
tion.  The  compelled  exercise  contributed  its  part ;  and  by 
the  time  the  mate,  to  use  his  own  expression,  "  had  run  the 
nigger  into  dock,'1  which  meant  when  he  had  got  him  safe 
within  the  hut,  his  senses  and  faculties  had  so  far  revived 
as  to  enable  him  to  think  and  to  speak.  As  Gardiner  and 
Stimson  returned  with  him,  everybody  was  up  and  listen 
ing,  when  the  b.ack  told  his  story. 

It  would  seem  that,  during  the  terrible  month  which  had 
just  passed,  Daggett  had  compelled  his  crew  to  use  more 
exercise  than  had  been  their  practice  of  late.  Some  new 
apprehension  had  come  over  him  on  the  subject  of  fuel,  and 
his  orders  to  be  saving  in  that  article  were  most  stringent, 
and  very  rigidly  enforced.  The  consequence  was,  that  the 
camboose  was  not  as  well  attended  to  as  it  had  been  pre 
viously,  and  as  circumstances  required,  indeed,  that  it 
should  be.  At  night,  the  men  were  told  to  keep  themselves 
warm  with  bed-clothes,  and  by  huddling  together;  and  the 
cabin  being  small,  so  many  persons  crowded  together  in  it, 
did  not  fail  to  produce  an  impression  on  its  atmosphere. 

Such  was  the  state  of  things,  when,  on  going  to  his  cam- 
boose,  in  order  to  cook  the  breakfast,  this  very  black  found 
the  fire  totally  extinguished !  Not  a  spark  could  he  dis 
cover,  even  among  the  ashes ;  and,  what  was  even  worse, 
the  tinder-box  had  disappeared.  As  respects  the  last,  it 
may  be  well  to  state  here,  that  it  was  afterwards  discovered 
carefully  bestowed  between  two  of  the  timbers  of  the  wreck, 
with  a  view  to  a  particular  safe-keeping;  the  person  who 
had  made  this  disposition  of  it,  forgetting  what  he  had  done. 
The  loss  of  the  tinder-box,  under  the  circumstances,  was 
almost  as  great  a  calamity  as  could  have  befallen  men,  in 
the  situation  of  the  Vineyarders.  As  against  the  cold,  by 
means  of  bed-clothes,  exercise,  and  other  precautions,  it 
might  have  been  possible  to  exist  for  some  time,  provided 
warm  food  could  be  obtained ;  but  the  frost  penetrated  the 
cabin,  and  every  one  soon  became  sensitively  alive  to  the 
awkwardness,  not  to  say  danger,  of  their  condition.  A 


THE    SEA     ^IONS.  369 

whole  day  was  passed  in  fruitless  attempts  to  obtain  fire, 
by  various  processes.  Friction  did  not  succeed ;  it  pro 
bably  never  does  with  the  thermometer  at  zero.  Sparks 
could  be  obtained,  but  by  this  time  everything  was  stiff 
with  the  frost.  The  food  already  cooked  was  soon  as  hard 
as  bullets,  and  it  was  found  that,  on  the  second  night, 
brandy  that  was  exposed  was  converted  into  a  lump  of  ice. 
Not  only  did  the  intensity  of  the  cold  increase,  but  every 
thing,  even  to  the  human  system,  seemed  to  be  gradually 
congealing,  and  preparing  to  become  converted  into  recep 
tacles  for  frost.  Several  of  the  men  began  to  suffer  in  their 
ears,  noses,  feet  and  other  extremities,  and  the  bunks  were 
soon  the  only  places  in  which  it  was  found  possible  to  exist 
in  anything  like  comfort.  No  less  than  three  men  had 
been  sent,  at  intervals  of  a  few  hours,  across  to  the  house, 
with  a  view  to  obtain  fire,  or  the  means  of  lighting  one, 
along  with  other  articles  that  were  considered  necessary  to 
the  safety  of  the  people.  The  cook  had  been  the  third 
and  last  of  these  messengers.  He  had  passed  his  two  ship 
mates,  each  lying  dead  on  the  snow, — or,  as  he  supposed, 
lifeless;  for  neither  gave  the  smallest  sign  of  vitality,  on 
an  examination.  It  was  in  the  agony  of  alarm  produced 
by  these  appalling  spectacles,  that  the  negro  had  cried 
aloud  for  help,  sending  the  sounds  far  enough  to  reach  the 
ears  of  Roswell.  Still  he  had  persevered;  until  chilled,  as 
much  with  terror,  as  with  the  cold  and  the  want  of  warm 
nourishment,  the  cook  had  sunk  into  what  would  have  soon 
proved  to  be  his  last  long  sleep,  when  the  timely  succour 
arrived. 

It  was  some  two  hours  after  the  black  had  been  got  into 
(he  hut,  and  was  strengthened  with  a  good  hot  supper,  ere 
he  had  communicated  all  the  facts  just  related.  Roswell 
succeeded,  however,  in  getting  a  little  at  a  time  from  him; 
and  when  no  more  remained  to  be  related,  the  plan  was 
already  arranged  for  future  proceedings.  It  was  quite  clear 
no  unnecessary  delay  should  be  permitted  to  take  place. 
The  cold  continued  to  increase  in  intensity,  notwithstand 
ing  it  was  the  opinion  of  the  most  experienced  among  the 
men  that  a  thaw,  and  a  great  spring  thaw,  was  approaching, 
ft  often  happens,  in  climates  of  an  exaggerated  character. 


370  THE     SEA     LIO.VS 

that  these  extremes  almost  touch  each  other,  as  they  are 
said  to  meet  in  man. 

Roswell  left  the  house,  for  the  second  time  that  eventful 
night,  just  at  the  hour  of  twelve.  He  now  went  accom 
panied  by  the  second  mate  and  a  foremast-hand,  as  well  as 
by  his  old  companion,  the  boat-steerer.  Each  individual 
drank  a  bowl  of  hot  coffee  before  he  set  out,  and  a  good 
warm  supper  had  also  been  taken  in  the  interval  between 
the  return  and  this  new  sortie.  Experience  shows  that 
there  is  no  such  protector  against  the  effect  of  cold  as  a 
full  stomach,  more  especially  if  the  food  be  warm  and  nou 
rishing.  This  was  understood  by  Roswell ;  and  not  only 
did  he  cause  the  whole  party  that  set  forth  with  him  at  that 
late  and  menacing  hour  to  receive  this  sustenance,  but  he 
ordered  the  kettle  of  boiling  coffee  to  be  carried  with  them, 
and  kept  two  lamps  burning,  for  the  double  purpose  of 
maintaining  the  heat,  and  of  having  a  fire  ready  on  reach 
ing  the  wreck.  The  oil  of  the  sea-elephant,  together  with 
pieces  of  canvass  prepared  for  the  purpose,  supplied  the 
necessary  materials. 

So  intensely  severe  was  the  weather,  that  Roswell  had 
serious  thoughts  of  returning  when  he  reached  the  spot 
where  the  black  had  been  found.  But  the  picture  of  Dag- 
gett's  situation  that  occurred  to  his  mind,  urged  him  on, 
and  he  proceeded.  Every  precaution  had  been  taken  to 
exclude  the  cold,  as  it  is  usually  termed,  which,  as  it  re 
spects  the  body,  means  little  else  than  keeping  the  vital 
heat  in,  and  very  useful  were  these  provisions  found  to  be. 
Skins  formed  the  principal  defence,  though  the  men  had 
long  adopted  the  very  simple  but  excellent  expedient  of 
wearing  two  shirts.  Owing  to  this,  and  to  the  other  mea 
sures  taken,  neither  of  the  four  was  struck  with  a  chill,  and 
they  all  continued  on. 

At  the  place  mentioned  by  the  black,  the  body  of  one  of 
Daggett's  best  men,  a  boat-steerer,  was  found.  The  man 
was  dead,  of  course,  and  the  corpse  was  as  rigid  as  a  billet 
of  wood.  Every  particle  of  moisture  in  it  had  congealed, 
until  the  whole  of  what  had  been  a  very  fine  and  manly 
frame,  lay  little  more  than  a  senseless  lump  of  ice.  A  few 
degrees  to  the  southward  of  the  spot  where  it  was  now  seen, 
it  is  probable  that  this  relic  of  humanity  would  have  re- 


THE    SEA    LIONS.  371 

tained  its  form  and  impression,  until  the  trump  sounded  to 
summon  it  to  meet  its  former  tenant,  the  spirit,  in  judg 
ment. 

No  time  was  lost  in  useless  lamentations  over  the  body 
of  this  man,  who  was  much  of  a  favourite  among  the 
Oyster  Ponders.  Twenty  minutes  later,  the  second  corpse 
was  found;  both  the  bodies  lying  in  what  was  the  customary 
track  between  the  house  and  the  wreck.  It  was  the  last 
that  had  died ;  but,  like  that  of  the  unfortunate  man  just 
described,  it  was  in  a  state  to  be  preserved  ten  thousand 
years,  without  the  occurrence  of  a  thaw.  Merely  glancing 
at  the  rigid  features  of  the  face,  in  order  to  identify  the 
person,  Roswell  passed  on,  the  chill  feelings  of  every  indi 
vidual  of  his  party  now  admonishing  them  all  of  the  ne 
cessity  of  getting  as  soon  as  possible  to  some  place  where 
they  could  feel  the  influence  of  a  fire.  In  ten  minutes 
more,  the  whole  were  in  the  caverns  of  the  ice,  and,  pre 
sently,  the  cabin  of  the  wreck  was  entered.  Without  turn 
ing  to  the  right  hand  or  to  the  left,  without  looking  for  one 
of  the  inmates  of  the  place,  every  man  among  the  new 
comers  turned  his  attention  instantly  to  getting  the  fire 
lighted.  The  camboose  had  been  filled  with  wood,  and  it 
was  evident  that  many  efforts  had  been  made  to  produce  a 
blaze,  by  those  who  had  put  it  there.  Splinters  of  pine 
had  been  inserted  among  the  oak  of  the  vessel,  and  nothing 
was  wanting  but  the  means  of  kindling.  These,  most 
fortunately  for  themselves,  the  party  of  Roswell  had,  and 
eagerly  did  they  now  have  recourse  to  their  use. 

There  was  not  a  man  among  the  Oyster  Ponders  who  did 
not,  just  at  that  moment,  feel  his  whole  being  concentrated 
in  that  one  desire  to  obtain  warmth.  The  cold  had  slowly, 
but  surely,  insinuated  itself  among  their  garments,  and 
slight  chills  were  now  felt  even  by  Roswell,  whose  frame 
had  been  most  wonderfully  sustained  that  night,  through 
the  force  of  moral  feeling.  Stimson  was  the  individual 
who  was  put  forward  at  the  camboose,  others  holding  the 
lamps,  canvass  saturated  with  oil,  and  some  prepared 
paper.  It  was  found  to  be  perceptibly  warmer  within  the 
cabin,  with  its  doors  closed,  and  the  external  coverings  of 
sails,  &c.,  that  had  been  made  to  exclude  the  air,  than 
without;  nevertheless,  when  Roswell  glanced  at  a  ther- 
32 


372  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

mometer  that  was  hanging  against  the  bulk-head,  he  saw 
that  all  the  mercury  was  still  in  the  ball ! 

The  interest  with  which  our  party  now  watched  the  pro 
ceedings  of  Stephen,  had  much  of  that  intensity  that  ia 
known  to  attend  any  exhibition  of  vital  importance.  Life 
and  death  were,  however,  to  be  dependent  on  the  issue; 
and  the  manner  in  which  every  eye  was  turned  on  the 
wood,  and  Stephen's  mode  of  dealing  with  it,  denoted  how 
completely  the  dread  of  freezing  had  got  possession  of  the 
minds  of  even  these  robust  and  generous  men.  Roswell 
alone  ventured,  for  a  single  moment,  to  look  around  the 
cabin.  Three  of  the  Vineyarders  only  were  visible  in  it ; 
though  it  struck  him  that  others  lay  in  the  berths,  under 
piles  of  clothes.  Of  the  three  who  were  up,  one  was  so 
near  the  lamp  he  held  in  his  hand,  that  its  light  illumined 
his  face,  and  all  that  could  be  seen  of  a  form  enveloped  in 
skins.  This  man  sat  leaning  against  a  transom.  His  eyes 
were  open,  and  glared  on  the  party  around  the  camboose; 
the  lips  were  slightly  parted,  and,  at  first,  Roswell  expected 
to  hear  him  speak.  The  immovable  features,  rigid  mus 
cles,  and  wild  expression  of  the  eyeballs,  however,  soon 
told  him  the  melancholy  truth.  The  man  was  dead.  The 
current  of  life  had  actually  frozen  at  his  heart.  Shudder 
ing,  as  much  with  horror  as  with  a  sharp  chill  that  just 
then  passed  through  his  own  stout  frame,  our  young  master 
turned  anxiously  to  note  the  success  of  Stimson,  in  getting 
the  wood  of  the  camboose  in  a  blaze. 

Every  one,  in  the  least  accustomed  to  a  very  severe 
climate,  must  have  had  frequent  occasions  to  observe  the 
reluctance  with  which  all  sorts  of  jfuel  burn,  in  exceedingly 
cold  weather.  The  billet  of  wood  that  shall  blaze  merrily, 
on  a  mild  day,  moulders  and  simmers,  and  seems  indis 
posed  to  give  out  any  heat  at  all,  with  the  thermometer  at 
zero.  In  a  word,  all  inanimate  substances  that  contain  the 
elements  of  caloric  appear  to  sympathize  with  the  prevail 
ing  state  of  the  atmosphere,  and  to  contribute  to  render 
that  which  is  already  too  cold  for  comfort,  even  colder. 
So  it  was  now;  notwithstanding  the  preparations  that  had 
been  made.  Baffled  twice  in  his  expectations  of  procuring 
a  blaze,  Stephen  stopped  and  took  a  drink  of  the  hot  coffee. 


THE    SEA    LIONS.  373 

As  he  swallowed  the  beverage,  it  struck  him  that  it  was 
fast  losing  its  warmth. 

A  considerable  collection  of  canvass,  saturated  with  oil, 
was  now  put  beneath  the  pile,  in  the  midst  of  splinters  of 
pine,  and  one  of  the  lamps  was  forced  into  the  centre  of 
the  combustibles.  This  expedient  succeeded^  the  frosts 
were  slowly  chased  out  of  the  kindling  materials;  a  sickly 
but  gradually  increasing  flame  strove  through  the  kindling 
stuff  and  soon  began  to  play  among  the  billets  of  the  oak, 
the  only  fuel  that  could  be  relied  on  for  available  heat. 
Still  there  was  great  danger  that  the  lighter  wood  would 
all  be  consumed  ere  this  main  dependence  could  be  aroused 
from  its  dull  inactivity.  Frost  appeared  to  be  in  possession 
of  the  whole  pile ;  and  it  was  expelled  so  slowly,  clung  to 
its  dominion  with  so  much  power,  as  really  to  render  the 
result  doubtful,  for  a  moment  or  two.  Fortunately,  there 
was  found  a  pair  of  bellows ;  and  by  means  of  a  judicious 
use  of  this  very  useful  implement,  the  oak  wood  was  got 
into  a  bright  blaze,  and  warmth  began  to  be  given  out 
from  the  fire.  Then  came  the  shiverings  and  chills,  with 
which  intense  cold  consents  even  to  abandon  the  human 
frame ;  and,  by  their  number  and  force,  Roswell  was  made 
to  understand  how  near  he  and  his  companions  had  been 
to  death.  As  the  young  man  saw  the  fire  slowly  kindle  to 
a  cheerful  blaze,  a  glow  of  gratitude  flowed  towards  his 
heart,  and  mentally  he  returned  thanks  to  God.  The 
cabin  was  so  small,  had  been  made  so  tight  by  artificial 
means,  and  the  camboose  was  so  large,  that  a  sensible 
influence  was  produced  on  the  temperature,  as  soon  as  the 
wood  began  to  burn  a  little  freely.  As  none  of  the  heat 
was  lost,  the  effect  was  not  only  apparent,  but  most  grateful. 
Roswell  had  looked  into  the  vessels  of  the  camboose  while 
the  fire  was  gathering  head.  One,  the  largest,  was  filled, 
or  nearly  so,  with  coffee  frozen  to  a  solid  mass !  In  the 
other,  beef  and  pork  had  been  set  over  to  boil,  and  there 
the  pieces  now  were,  embedded  in  ice,  and  frozen  to 
blocks.  It  was  when  these  two  distinct  masses  of  ice 
began  to  melt,  that  it  was  known  the  fire  was  beginning  to 
prevail,  and  hope  revived  in  the  bosoms  of  the  Oyster 
Ponders.  On  taking  another  look  at  the  thermometer,  it 
was  found  that  the  mercury  had  so  far  expanded  as  to  be 


374  TfeLE    SEA    L  1  O  M  S  . 

leaving  the  ball.  It  soon  after  ascended  so  high  as  to  de 
note  only  forty  degrees  below  zero ! 

Every  thing,  even  to  life,  depending  on  maintaining  and 
increasing  the  power  of  the  fire,  the  men  now  looked  about 
them  for  more  fuel.  There  was  an  ample  stock  in  the 
cabin,  however,  the  fire  having  become  extinguished,  not 
for  want  of  wood,  but  in  the  usual  way.  It  were  needless 
to  describe  the  manner  in  which  those  who  stood  around 
the  stove  watched  the  flames,  or  how  profound  was  their 
satisfaction  when  they  saw  that  Stimson  had  finally  suc 
ceeded. 

"  God  be  praised  for  this  and  for  all  his  mercies !"  ex- 
claimed  Stephen,  laying  aside  the  bellows,  at  last.  "  I  can 
feel  warmth  from  the  fire,  and  that  will  save  such  of  us  as 
have  not  yet  been  taken  away."  He  then  lifted  the  lids, 
and  looked  into  the  different  vessels  that  were  on.  The 
ice  was  melting  fast,  and  the  steams  of  coffee  became  ap 
parent  to  the  senses.  It  was  at.  this  instant  that  a  feeble 
voice  was  heard  issuing  from  beneath  the  coverings  of  a 
berth. 

"  Gar'ner,"  it  said,  imploringly,  "  if  you  have  any  feelin' 
for  a  fellow-creatur'  in  distress,  warm  me  up  with  one 
swallow  of  that  coffee !  Oh  !  how  pleasantly  it  smells,  and 
how  good  it  must  be  for  the  stomach !  For  three  days 
have  I  tasted  nothing — not  even  water." 

This  was  Daggett,  the  long-tried  sealer ;  the  man  of  iron 
nerves  and  golden  longings;  he  who  had  so  lately  concen 
trated  within  himself  all  that  was  necessary  to  form  a  per 
tinacious,  resolute,  and  grasping  seeker  after  gain.  How 
changed,  now,  in  all  this !  He  asked  for  the  means  of 
preserving  life,  and  thought  no  more  of  skins,  and  oils,  and 
treasures  on  desert  keys. 

Roswell  was  no  sooner  apprised  of  the  situation  of  hia 
brother-master,  than  he  bestowed  the  necessary  care  on  his 
wants.  Fortunately,  the  coffee  brought  by  the  Oyster 
Ponders,  and  which  retained  some  of  its  original  warmth, 
had  been  set  before  the  fire,  and  was  now  as  hot  as  the 
human  stomach  could  bear  it.  Two  or  three  swallows  of 
this  grateful  fluid  were  given  to  Daggett,  and  his  voice 
almost  instantaneously  showeil  the  effect  they  produced. 

"  I  'm  in  a  bad  way,  Gar  ner,"  resumed  the  vineyard* 


THE    SEA    LIONS.  375 

master;  UI  fear  we're  all  in  a  bad  way,  that  are  here.  I 
held  out  ag'in  the  cold  as  long  as  human  natur*  could  bear 
it,  but  was  forced  to  give  in  at  last." 

"  How  many  of  your  people  still  remain,  Daggett?  tell 
us,  that  we  may  look  for  them,  and  attend  to  their  wants." 

"  I'm  afraid,  Gar'ner,  they'll  never  want  anything  more 
in  this  life !  The  second  mate  and  two  of  the  hands  were 
sitting  in  the  cabin  when  I  got  into  this  berth,  and  I  fear 
't  will  be  found  that  they  're  dead.  I  urged  them  to  turn 
in,  too,  as  the  berths  were  the  only  place  where  anything 
like  warmth  was  to  be  found ;  but  drowsiness  had  come  on 
'em,  and,  when  that  is  the  case,  freezin'  soon  follows." 

"  The  three  men  in  the  cabin  are  past  our  assistance, 
being  actually  frozen  into  logs;  but  there  must  be  several 
more  of  you.  I  see  the  signs  of  two  others  in  the  berths — 
ah  !  what  do  you  say  to  that  poor  fellow,  Stephen?" 

"  The  spirit  is  still  in  the  body,  sir,  but  about  to  depart. 
If  we  can  get  him  to  swallow  a  little  of  the  coffee,  the 
angel  of  death  may  yet  loosen  his  hold  on  him." 

The  coffee  was  got  down  this  man's  throat,  and  he  in 
stantly  revived.  He  was  a  young  man  named  Lee,  and 
was  one  of  the  finest  physical  specimens  of  strength  and 
youth  in  the  whole  crew.  On  examining  his  limbs,  none 
were  found  absolutely  frozen,  though  the  circulation  of  the 
blood  was  so  near  being  checked  that  another  hour  of  the 
great  cold  which  had  reigned  in  the  cabin,  and  which  was 
slowly  increasing  in  intensity,  must  have  destroyed  him. 
On  applying  a  similar  process  to  Daggett,  Roswell  was 
startled  at  the  discovery  he  made.  The  feet,  legs,  and 
forearms  of  the  unfortunate  Vineyarder  were  all  as  stiff  and 
rigid  as  icicles.  In  these  particulars  there  could  be  no 
mistake,  and  men  were  immediately  sent  for  snow,  in  order 
to  extract  the  frost  by  the  only  safe  process  known  to  the 
sealers.  The  dead  bodies  were  carried  from  the  cabin, 
and  laid  decently  on  the  ice,  outside,  the  increasing  warmth 
within  rendering  the  removal  advisable.  On  glancing 
again  at  the  thermometer,  now  suspended  in  a  remote  part 
of  the  cabin,  the  mercury  was  found  risen  to  two  above 
zero.  This  was  a  very  tolerable  degree  of  cold,  and  the 
men  began  to  lay  aside  some  of  their  extra  defences  against 
«  32* 


376  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

the  weather,  which  would  otherwise  be  of  no  service  to 
them  when  exposed  outside. 

The  crew  of  the  Vineyard  Lion  had  consisted  of  fifteen 
souls,  one  less  than  that  of  her  consort.  Of  these  men, 
four  had  lost  their  lives  between  the  wreck  and  the  house ; 
two  on  a  former,  and  two  on  the  present  occasion.  Three 
bodies  were  found  sitting  in  the  cabin,  and  two  more  were 
taken  out  of  the  berths,  dead.  The  captain,  the  cook  and 
Lee,  added  to  these,  made  a  dozen,  leaving  but  three  of 
the  crew  to  be  accounted  for.  When  questioned  on  the 
subject,  Lee  said  that  one  of  those  three  had  frozen  to 
death  in  the  caverns,  several  days  before,  and  the  other  two 
had  set  out  for  the  hut  in  the  last  snow-storm,  unable  to 
endure  the  cold  at  the  wreck  any  longer.  As  these  two 
men  had  not  arrived  at  the  house  when  Gardiner  and  his 
companions  left  it,  they  had  perished,  out  of  all  doubt. 
Thus,  of  the  fifteen  human  beings  who  had  sailed  together 
from  Martha's  Vineyard,  ready  to  encounter  every  hazard 
in  order  to  secure  wealth,  or  what  in  their  estimation  was 
wealth,  but  three  remained ;  and  of  these,  two  might  be 
considered  in  a  critical  condition.  Lee  was  tke  only  man 
of  the  entire  crew  who  was  sound  and  fit  for  service. 


CHAPTEK  XXYII. 

"  Bid  him  bow  down  to  that  which  is  above  him, — 
The  overruling  Infinite, — the  Maker, — 
Who  made  him  not  for  worship, — let  him  kneel, 
A  id  we  will  kneel  together." 

BTROIT. 

WHEN  the  bodies  had  been  removed  from  the  cabin, 
and  the  limbs  of  Daggett  were  covered  with  snow,  Ros- 
well  Gardiner  took  another  look  at  the  thermometer.  It 
had  risen  already  to  twenty  degrees  above  zero.  This  was 
absolutely  warmth,  compared  with  the  temperature  from 
which  the  men  had  just  escaped,  and  it  was  felt  to  \&  so, 


T.HE    SEA    LIONS.  377 

in  their  persons.  The  fire,  however,  was  not  the  only 
cause  of  this  most  acceptable  change.  One  of  the  men 
who  had  been  outside  soon  came  back  and  reported  a 
decided  improvement  in  the  weather.  The  wind,  which 
had  been  coquetting  with  the  north-east  point  of  the  com 
pass  for  several  hours,  now  blew  steadily  from  that  quarter. 
An  hour  later  it  was  found,  on  examination,  that  a  second 
thermometer,  which  was  outside,  actually  indicated  ten 
above  zero!  This  sudden  and  great  change  came  alto 
gether  from  the  wind,  which  was  now  in  the  warm  quarter. 
The  men  stripped  themselves  of  most  of  their  skins,  and 
the  fire  was  suffered  to  go  down,  though  care  was  taken 
that  it  should  not  again  be  totally  extinguished. 

We  have  little  pleasure  in  exhibiting  pictures  of  human 
suffering;  and  shall  say  but  little  of  the  groans  and  pains 
that  Daggett  uttered  and  endured,  while  undergoing  that 
most  agonizing  process  of  having  the  frost  taken  out  of  his 
system  by  cold  applications.  It  was  the  only  safe  way  of 
treating  his  case,  however,  and  as  he  knew  it,  he  bore  his 
sufferings  as  well  as  man  could  bear  them.  Long  ere  the 
return  of  day  he  was  released  from  his  agony,  and  was  pu 
back  into  his  berth,  which  had  been  comfortably  arranged 
for  him,  having  the  almost  unheard-of  luxury  of  sheets, 
with  an  additional  mattress. 

As  Stephen  remarked,  when  the  men  were  told  to  try 
and  get  a  little  sleep,  "  There 's  plenty  of  berths  empty, 
and  each  on  us  can  have  as  many  clothes  and  as  warm  a 
bed  as  he  can  ask  for,  now  that  so  many  have  hastened 
away  to  their  great  account,  as  it  might  be,  in  the  pride 
of  their  youth  and  strength." 

Activity,  the  responsibility  of  command,  and  the  great 
necessity  there  had  been  for  exertion,  prevented  Roswell 
from  reflecting  much  on  what  had  happened,  until  he  lay 
down  to  catch  a  little  sleep.  Then,  indeed,  the  whole  of 
the  past  came  over  him,  in  one  sombre,  terrible  picture, 
and  he  had  the  most  lively  perception  of  the  dangers  from 
which  he  had  escaped,  as  well  as  of  the  mercy  of  God's 
Providence.  Surrounded  by  the  dead,  as  it  might  be,  and 
Btill  uncertain  of  the  fate  of  the  living,  his  views  of  the  past 
and  future  became  much  lessened  in  confidence  and  hope. 
The  majesty  and  judgment  rf  God  assumed  a  higher  place 


378  THE    SEA 

than  common  in  his  thoughts,  while  his  estimate  of  him 
self  was  fast  getting  to  be  humble  ana  searching.  Tn  the 
midst  of  all  these  changes  of  views  anu  feelings,  however, 
there  was  one  image  unaltered  in  the  young  man  s  imaj>. 
nation.  Mary  occupied  the  back-ground  ot  everv  picture 
with  her  meek,  gentle,  but  blooming  countenance.  *:  :ic 
thought  of  God,  her  eyes  were  elevated  in  prayer .  11  .lie 
voyage  home  was  in  his  mind,  and  the  chances  of  success 
were  calculated,  her  smiles  and  anxious  watchfulness  stim 
ulated  him  to  adventure;  if  arrived  and  safe,  her  downcast 
but  joyful  looks  betrived  the  modest  happiness  of  her  in 
most  heart.  It  was  in  i^e  midst  of  some  such  pictures 
that  Roswell  now  fell  asleep. 

When  the  party  turned  out  in  the  morning,  a  still  more 
decided  change  had  occurred  in  the  weather.  The  wine 
had  increased  to  a  gale,  bringing  with  it  torrents  of  rain. 
Coming  from  the  warm  quarter,  a  thaw  had  set  m  with  a 
character  quite  as  decided  as  the  previous  frost.  In  that 
region,  the  weather  is  usually  exaggerated  in  its  features, 
and  the  change  from  winter  to  spring  is  quite  as  sudden  as 
that  from  autumn  to  winter.  We  use  the  terms  "  spring" 
and  "  autumn"  out  of  complaisance  to  the  usages  of  men ; 
but,  in  fact,  these  two  seasons  have  scarcely  any  existence 
at  all  in  the  antarctic  seas.  The  change,  commonly,  is 
from  winter  to  summer,  such  as  summer  is,  and  from  sum 
mer  back  to  winter. 

Notwithstanding  the  favourable  appearances  of  things, 
when  Roswell  walked  out  into  the  open  air  next  morning, 
he  well  knew  that  summer  had  not  yet  come.  Many  weeks 
must  go  by  ere  the  ice  could  quit  the  bay,  and  even  a  boat 
could  put  to  sea.  There  were  considerations  of  prudence, 
therefore,  that  should  not  be  neglected,  connected  with  the 
continuance  of  the  supplies  and  the  means  of  subsistence. 
In  one  respect  the  party  now  on  the  island  had  been  gainers 
by  the  terrible  losses  it  had  sustained  in  Daggett's  crew. 
The  provisions  of  the  two  vessels  might  now,  virtually,  be 
appropriated  to  the  crew  of  one;  and  Roswell,  when  he 
came  to  reflect  on  the  circumstances,  saw  that  a  Providen 
tial  interference  had  probably  saved  the  survivors  from  great 
privations,  if  not  from  absolute  want. 

Still  there  was  a  thaw,  and  one  of  that  decided  character 


THE    SEA    LIONS.  379 

which  marks  a  climate  of  great  extremes.  The  snows  on 
the  mountain  soon  began  to  descend  upon  the  plain,  in 
foaming  torrents;  and,  increased  by  the  tribute  received 
from  the  last,  the  whole  came  tumbling  over  the  cliffs  in  va 
rious  places  in  rich  water-falls.  There  was  about  a  mile  of 
rock  that  was  one  continuous  cataract,  the  sheet  being  nearly 
unbroken  for  the  whole  distance.  The  effect  of  this  deluge 
from  the  plain  above  was  as  startling  as  it  was  grand.  All 
the  snow  along  the  rocky  shore  soon  disappeared ;  and  the 
fragments  of  ice  began  rapidly  to  diminish  in  size,  and  to 
crumble.  At  first,  Roswell  felt  much  concern  on  account 
of  the  security  of  the  wreck;  his  original  apprehension 
being  that  it  would  be  washed  away.  This  ground  of  fear 
was  soon  succeeded  by  another  of  scarcely  less  serious  im 
port —  that  of  its  being  crushed  by  the  enormous  cakes  of 
ice  that  made  the  caverns  in  which  it  lay,  and  which  now 
began  to  settle  and  change  their  positions,  as  the  water 
washed  away  their  bases.  At  one  time  Roswell  thought 
of  setting  the  storm  at  defiance,  and  of  carrying  Daggett 
across  to  the  house  by  means  of  the  hand-barrow ;  but 
when  he  came  to  look  at  the  torrents  of  water  that  were 
crossing  the  rocks,  so  many  raging  rivulets,  the  idea  was 
abandoned  as  impracticable.  Another  night  was  therefore 
passed  in  the  midst  of  the  tempest. 

The  north-east  wind,  the  rain,  and  the  thaw,  were  all  at 
work  in  concert,  when  our  adventurers  came  abroad  to 
look  upon  the  second  day  of  their  sojourn  in  the  wreck. 
By  this  time  the  caverns  were  dripping  with  a  thousand 
little  streams,  and  every  sign  denoted  a  most  rapid  melting 
of  the  ice.  On  carrying  the  thermometer  into  the  open  air 
it  stood  at  sixty-two;  and  the  men  found  it  necessary  to  lay 
aside  their  second  shirt,  and  all  the  extraordinary  defences 
of  their  attire.  Nor  was  this  all ;  the  wind  that  crosses  the 
salt  water  is  known  to  have  more  than  the  usual  influence 
on  the  snows  and  ice ;  and  such  was  the  effect  now  pro 
duced  by  it  on  Sealer's  Land.  The  snow,  indeed,  had 
mostly  disappeared  from  all  places  but  the  drifts;  while  the 
ice  was  much  diminished  in  its  size  and  outlines.  So 
grateful  was  the  change  from  the  extreme  cold  that  they 
had  so  lately  endured,  that  the  men  thought  nothing  of  the 
rain  at  all ;  they  went  about  in  it  just  as  if  it  did  not  stream 


380  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

down  upon  them  in  little  torrents.  Some  of  them  clamber 
ed  up  the  cliffs,  and  reached  a  point  whence  it  was  known 
that  they  could  command  a  view  of  the  house.  The  return 
of  this  party,  which  Roswell  did  not  accompany,  was  waited 
for  with  a  good  deal  of  interest.  When  it  got  back,  it 
brought  a  report  that  was  deemed  important  in  several 
particulars.  The  snow  had  gone  from  the  plain,  and  from 
ithe  mountain,  with  the  exception  of  a  few  spots  where  there 
had  been  unusual  accumulations  of  it.  As  respected  the 
house,  it  was  standing,  and  the  snow  had  entirely  disap 
peared  from  its  vicinity.  The  men  could  be  seen  walking 
about  on  the  bare  rocks,  and  every  symptom  was  that  of 
settled  spring. 

This  was  cheering  news ;  and  the  torrents  having  much 
diminished  in  size,  some  having  disappeared  altogether, 
Roswell  set  out  for  the  cape,  leaving  the  second  mate  in 
charge  of  the  wreck.  Lee,  the  young  Vineyarder,  who  had 
been  rescued  from  freezing  by  the  timely  arrival  of  our 
hero,  accompanied  the  latter,  having  joined  his  fortunes  to 
those  of  the  Oyster  Ponders.  The  two  reached  the  house 
before  dark,  where  they  found  Hazard  and  his  companions 
in  a  good  deal  of  concern  touching  the  fate  of  the  party 
that  was  out.  A  deep  impression  was  made  by  the  report 
of  what  had  befallen  the  other  crew ;  and  that  night  Ros 
well  read  prayers  to  as  attentive  a  congregation  as  was 
ever  assembled  around  a  domestic  hearth.  As  for  fire, 
none  was  now  needed,  except  for  culinary  purposes,  though 
all  the  preparations  to  meet  cold  weather  were  maintained, 
it  being  well  known  that  a  shift  of  wind  might  bring  back 
the  fury  of  the  winter. 

The  following  morning  it  was  clear,  though  the  wind 
continued  warm  and  balmy  from  the  north.  No  such  wea 
ther,  indeed,  had  been  felt  by  the  sealers  since  they  reach 
ed  the  gioup;  and  the  effect  on  them  was  highly  cheering 
and  enlivening.  Before  he  had  breakfasted,  Roswell  was 
down  in  the  cove,  examining  into  the  condition  of  his 
vessel,  or  what  remained  of  her.  A  good  deal  of  frozen 
snow  still  lay  heaped  on  the  mass,  and  he  set  the  hands  at 
work  to  shovel  it  off.  Before  noon  the  craft  was  clear,  and 
most  of  the  snow  was  melted,  it  requiring  little  more  than 
exposure  to  the  air  in  order  to  get  rid  of  it. 


Tin:    SEA    LIONS.  381 

As  soon  as  the  hulk  was  clear,  Roswell  directed  his  men 
to  take  everything  out  of  it;  the  remains  of  cargo,  water- 
casks,  and  some  frozen  provisions,  in  order  that  it  might 
float  as  light  as  possible.  The  ice  was  frozen  close  to  every 
part  of  the  vessel's  bottom  to  a  depth  of  several  feet,  fol 
lowing  her  mould,  a  circumstance  that  would  necessarily 
prevent  her  settling  in  the  water  below  her  timbers ;  but, 
as  there  was  no  telling  when  this  ice  might  begin  to  recede 
by  melting,  it  was  deemed  prudent  to  use  this  precaution. 
It  was  found  that  the  experiment  succeeded,  the  hulk  ac 
tually  rising,  when  relieved  from  the  weight  in  it,  no  less 
than  four  inches. 

A  consultation  was  held  that  night,  between  Gardiner, 
his  officers,  and  the  oldest  of  the  seamen.  The  question 
presented  was  whether  the  party  should  attempt  to  quit  the 
group  in  the  boats,  or  whether  they  should  build  a  little  on 
the  hulk,  deck  her  over,  and  make  use  of  this  altered  craft, 
to  return  to  the  northward.  There  was  a  good  deal  to  be 
said  on  both  sides.  If  the  boats  were  used,  the  party  might 
leave  as  soon  as  the  weather  became  settled,  and  the  season 
a  little  more  advanced,  by  dragging  the  boats  on  sledges 
across  the  ice  to  the  open  water,  which  was  supposed  to 
be  some  ten  or  twenty  miles  to  the  northward,  and  a  large 
amount  of  provisions  might  thus  be  saved.  On  the  other 
hand,  however,  as  it  regarded  the  provisions,  the  boats 
would  hold  so  little,  that  no  great  gain  would  be  made  by 
going  early  in  them,  and  leaving  a  sufficient  supply  behind 
to  keep  all  hands  two  or  three  months.  This  was  a  consi 
deration  that  presented  itself,  and  it  had  its  weight  in  the 
decision.  Then  there  was  the  chance  of  the  winter's  re 
turning,  bringing  with  it  the  absolute  necessity  of  using  a 
great  deal  more  fuel.  This  was  a  matter  of  life  and  death. 
Comparatively  pleasant  as  the  weather  had  become,  there 
was  no  security  for  its  so  continuing.  One  entire  spring 
month  was  before  the  sealers,  and  a  shift  of  wind  might 
convert  the  weather  into  a  wintry  temperature.  Should 
such  be  the  case,  it  might  become  indispensable  to  burn 
the  very  materials  that  would  be  required  to  build  up  and 
deck  over  the  hulk.  There  were,  therefore,  many  things 
to  be  taken  into  the  account ;  nor  was  the  question  settled 
without  a  great  deal  of  debate  and  reflection. 


382  THE     SEA     LIONS. 

After  discussing  all  these  points,  the  decision  was  an 
follows.  It  was  at  least  a  month  too  soon  to  think  of  trust 
ing  themselves  in  that  stormy  ocean,  on  the  high  seas  and 
in  the  open  boats ;  and  this  so  much  the  more  because  na 
ture,  as  if  expressly  to  send  :>ack  a  reasonable  amount  of 
warm  air  into  the  polar  regions,  with  a  view  to  preserve 
the  distinction  of  the  seasons,  caused  the  wind  to  blow 
most  of  the  time  from  the  northward.  As  this  month,  in 
all  prudence,  must  be  passed  on  the  island,  it  might  as  well 
be  occupied  with  building  upon  the  hulk,  as  in  any  other 
occupation.  Should  the  cold  weather  return,  the  materials 
would  still  be  there,  and  might  be  burned,  in  the  last  ex 
tremity,  just  as  well,  or  even  with  greater  facility,  after  being 
brought  over  to  the  cove,  as  if  left  where  they  then  were, 
or  at  the  wreck.  Should  the  winter  not  return,  the  work 
done  on  the  vessel  would  be  so  much  gained,  and  they 
would  be  ready  for  an  earlier  start,  when  the  ice  should 
move. 

On  this  last  plan  the  duty  was  commenced,  very  little 
interrupted  by  the  weather.  For  quite  three  weeks  the 
wind  held  from  points  favourable  to  the  progress  of  spring, 
veering  from  east  to  west,  but  not  once  getting  any  south 
ing  in  it.  Occasionally  it  blew  in  gales,  sending  down 
upon  the  group  a  swell  that  made  great  havoc  with  the 
outer  edges  of  the  field-ice.  Every  day  or  two  a  couple  of 
hands  were  sent  up  the  mountain  to  take  a  look-out,  and 
to  report  the  state  of  matters  in  the  adjacent  seas.  The 
fleet  of  bergs  had  not  yet  come  out  of  port,  though  it  was 
in  motion  to  the  southward,  like  three-deckers  dropping 
down  to  outer  anchorages,  in  roadsteads  arid  bays.  As 
Roswell  intended  to  be  off  before  these  formidable  cruisers 
put  to  sea,  their  smallest  movement  or  change  was  watched 
and  noted.  As  for  the  field-ice,  it  was  broken  up,  miles  at 
at  a  time,  until  there  remained  very  little  of  it,  with  the 
exception  of  the  portion  that  was  wedged  in  and  jammed 
among  the  islands  of  the  group.  From  some  cause  that 
could  not  be  ascertained,  the  waves  of  the  ocean,  which 
came  tumbling  in  before  the  northern  gales,  failed  to  roll 
home  upon  this  ice,  which  lost  its  margin,  now  it  was 
reduced  to  the  limits  of  the  group,  slowly  arid  with  great 
resistance.  Some  of  the  sealers  ascribed  this  obstinacy  in 


SEA     LIONS.  383 

the  bay-ice  to  its  greater  thickness;  believing  that  the 
ehallowness  of  the  water  had  favoured  a  frozen  formation 
below,  that  did  not  so  much  prevail  off  soundings.  This 
theory  may  have  been  true,  though  there  was  quite  as  much 
against  it,  as  in  its  favour,  for  polar  ice  usually  increases 
above  and  not  from  below.  The  sea  is  much  warmer  than 
the  atmosphere,  in  the  cold  months,  and  the  ice  is  made 
by  deposites  of  snow,  moisture  and  sleet,  on  the  surfaces  of 
the  fields  and  bergs. 

In  those  three  weeks,  which  carried  forward  the  season 
to  within  ten  days  of  summer,  a  great  deal  of  useful  work 
was  done.  Daggett  was  brought  over  to  the  house,  on  a 
handbarrow,  for  the  second  time,  and  made  as  comfortable 
as  circumstances  would  allow.  From  the  first,  Roswell 
saw  that  his  state  was  very  precarious,  the  frozen  legs,  in 
particular,  being  threatened  with  mortification.  All  the 
expedients  known  to  a  sealer's  materia  medico,  were  re 
sorted  to,  in  order  to  avert  consequences  so  serious,  but 
without  success.  The  circulation  could  not  be  restored, 
as  nature  required  it  to  be  done,  and,  failing  of  the  support 
derived  from  a  healthful  condition  of  the  vital  current,  the 
fatal  symptoms  slowly  supervened.  This  change,  however, 
was  so  gradual,  that  it  scarce  affected  the  regular  course 
of  the  duty. 

It  was  a  work  of  great  labour  to  transport  the  remaining 
timbers  and  plank  of  the  wreck  to  the  cove.  Without  the 
wheels,  indeed,  it  may  be  questioned  whether  it  could  have 
been  done  at  all,  in  a  reasonable  time.  The  breaking  up  of 
the  schooner  was,  in  itself,  no  trifling  job,  for  fully  one  half 
of  the  frame  remained  to  be  pulled  to  pieces.  In  preparing 
the  materials  for  use,  again,  a  good  deal  of  embarrassment 
was  experienced  in  consequence  of  the  portions  of  the  two 
vessels  that  were  left  being  respectively  their  lower  bodies, 
all  the  upper  works  of  each  having  been  burned,  with  the 
exception  of  the  after  part  of  Daggett's  craft,  which  had 
been  preserved  on  account  of  the  cabin.  This  occasioned 
a  good  deal  of  trouble  in  moulding  and  fitting  the  new  upper 
works  on  the  hulk  in  the  cove.  Roswell  had  no  idea  of 
rebuilding  his  schooner  strictly  in  her  old  form  and  pro 
portions  ;  he  did  not,  indeed,  possess  the  materials  for  such 
a  reconstruction.  His  plan  was,  simply,  to  raise  on  the 


384  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

hulk  as  much  as  was  necessary  to  render  her  safe  and  con 
venient,  and  then  to  get  as  good  and  secure  a  deck  over  all 
as  circumstances  would  allow. 

Fortunately  for  the  progress  of  the  work,  Lee,  the  Vine 
yard  man,  was  a  ship-carpenter,  and  his  skill  essentially 
surpassed  that  of  Smith,  who  filled  the  same  station  on 
board  the  Oyster  Pond  craft.  These  two  men  were  now 
of  the  greatest  service ;  for,  though  neither  understood 
drafting,  each  was  skilful  in  the  use  of  tools,  and  had  a 
certain  readiness  that  enabled  him  to  do  a  hundred  things 
that  he  had  never  found  it  necessary  to  attempt  on  any 
former  occasion.  If  the  upper  frame  that  was  now  got  on 
the  Sea  Lion  was  not  of  faultless  mould,  it  was  securely 
fastened,  and  rendered  the  craft  even  stronger  than  it  had 
been  originally.  Some  regard  was  had  to  resisting  the 
pressure  of  ice,  and  experience  had  taught  all  the  sealers 
where  the  principal  defences  against  the  effects  of  a  "  nip" 
ought  to  be  placed.  The  lines  were  not  perfect,  it  is  true  ; 
but  this  was  of  less  moment,  as  the  bottom  of  the  craft, 
which  alone  had  any  material  influence  on  her  sailing,  was 
just  as  it  had  come  from  the  hands  of  the  artizan  who  had 
originally  moulded  her. 

By  the  end  of  a  fortnight,  the  new  top-timbers  were  all 
in  their  places,  and  secured,  while  a  complete  set  of  bends 
were  brought  to  them,  and  were  well  bolted.  The  caulk- 
ing-irons  were  put  in  requisition  as  soon  as  a  streak  was 
on,  the  whole  work  advancing,  as  it  might  be,  pari  passu. 
Planks  for  the  decks  were  much  wanted,  for,  in  the  terrible 
strait  for  fuel  which  had  caused  the  original  assault  on  the 
schooner,  this  portion  of  the  vessel  had  been  the  first  burned, 
as  of  the  most  combustible  materials.  The  quarter-deck 
of  the  Vineyard  craft,  luckily,  was  entire,  and  its  planks  so 
far  answered  an  excellent  purpose.  They  served  to  make 
a  new  quarter-deck  for  the  repairs,  but  the  whole  of  the 
main-deck  and  forecastle  remained  to  be  provided  for. 
Materials  were  gleaned  from  different  parts  of  the  two  ves 
sels,  until  a  reasonably  convenient,  and  a  perfectly  safe 
deck  was  laid  over  the  whole  craft,  the  coamings  for  the 
hatches  being  taken  from  Daggett's  schooner,  which  had 
not  been  broken  up  in  those  parts.  It  is  scarcely  neces 
sary  to  say  that  the  ice  had  early  melted  from  the  rocks  of 


THE    SEA    LIONS.  385 

the  coast.  The  caverns  all  disappeared  within  the  first 
week  of  the  thaw,  the  attitudes  into  which  the  cakes  had 
been  thrown  greatly  favouring  the  melting  process,  by  ex 
posing  so  much  surface  to  the  joint  action  of  wind,  rain, 
and  sun.  What  was  viewed  as  a  favourable  augury,  the 
seals  began  to  reappear.  There  was  a  remote  portion  of 
the  coast,  from  which  the  ice  had  been  driven  by  the 
winds  around  the  north-west  cape,  that  was  already  alive 
with  them.  Alas !  these  animals  no  longer  awakened  cu 
pidity  in  the  breasts  of  the  sealers.  The  last  no  longer 
thought  of  gain,  but  simply  of  saving  their  lives,  and  of 
restoring  themselves  to  the  humble  places  they  had  held  in 
the  world,  previously  to  having  come  on  this  ill-fated  voyage. 

This  re-appearance  of  the  seals  produced  a  deep  impres 
sion  on  Roswell  Gardiner.  His  mind  had  been  much  in 
clined  of  late  to  dwell  more  and  more  on  religious  subjects, 
and  his  conversations  with  Stephen  were  still  more  fre 
quent  than  formerly.  Not  that  the  boat-steerer  could 
enlighten  him  on  the  great  subject,  by  any  learned  lore,  for 
in  this  Stimson  was  quite  deficient;  but  his  officer  found 
encouragement  in  the  depth  and  heartiness  of  his  com 
panion's  faith,  which  seemed  to  be  raised  above  all  doubts 
and  misgivings  whatever.  During  the  gloomiest  moments 
of  that  fearful  winter,  Stephen  had  been  uniformly  confid 
ing  and  cheerful.  Not  once  had  he  been  seen  to  waver, 
though  all  around  him  were  desponding  and  anticipating 
the  worst.  His  heart  was  light  exactly  in  proportion  as 
his  faith  was  strong. 

"  We  shall  neither  freeze  nor  starve,"  he  used  to  say, 
"unless  it  be  God's  will;  and,  when  it  is  his  pleasure, 
depend  on  it,  friends,  it  will  be  for  our  good."  As  for 
Daggett,  he  had  finally  given  up  his  hold  on  the  wreck, 
and  it  seemed  no  longer  to  fill  his  thoughts.  When  he 
was  told  that  the  seals  had  come  back,  his  eye  brightened, 
and  his  nature  betrayed  some  of  its  ardent  longings.  But 
it  was  no  more  than  a  gleaming  of  the  former  spirit  of  the 
man,  now  becoming  dim  under  the  darkness  that  was  fast 
encircling  all  his  views  of  this  world. 

"  It's  a  pity,  Gar'ner,  that  we  have  no  craft  ready  for  the 
work,"  he  said,  under  the  first  impulse  of  the  intelligence. 


386  THE     SEA    LIONS. 

"  At  this  early  time  in  the  season,  a  large  ship  might  be 
filled  I" 

"  We  have  other  matters  on  our  hands,  Captain  Dag- 
gett,"  was  the  answer ;  "  they  must  be  looked  to  first.  If 
we  can  get  off  the  island  at  all  and  return  safe  to  those 
who,  I  much  fear,  are  now  mourning  us  as  dead,  we  shall 
have  great  reason  to  thank  God." 

"  A  few  skins  would  do  no  great  harm,  Gar'ner,  even  to 
a  craft  cut  down  and  reduced." 

"  We  have  more  cargo  now  than  we  shall  be  able  to 
take  with  us.  Quite  one  half  of  all  our  skins  must  be  left 
behind  us,  and  all  of  the  oil.  The  hold  of  the  schooner  is 
too  shallow  to  carry  enough  of  anything  to  make  out  a 
voyage.  I  shall  ballast  with  water  and  provisions,  and  fill 
up  all  the  spare  room  with  the  best  of  our  skins.  The  rest 
of  the  property  must  be  abandoned." 

"  Why  abandoned?  Leave  a  hand  or  two  to  take  care 
of  it,  and  send  a  craft  out  to  look  for  it,  as  soon  as  you  get 
home.  Leave  me,  Gar'ner,  I  am  willing  to  stay." 

Roswell  thought  that  the  poor  man  would  be  left, 
whether  he  wished  to  remain  or  not,  for  the  symptoms  that 
are  known  to  be  so  fatal  in  cases  like  that  of  Daggett's, 
were  making  themselves  so  apparent  as  to  leave  little  doubt 
of  the  result.  What  rendered  this  display  of  the  master- 
passion  somewhat  remarkable,  was  the  fact  that  our  hero 
had,  on  several  occasions,  conversed  with  the  invalid,  con 
cealing  no  material  feature  of  his  case,  and  the  latter  had 
expressed  his  expectation  of  a  fatal  termination,  if  not  an 
absolute  willingness  to  die.  Stimson  had  frequently  prayed 
with  Daggett,  and  Roswell  had  often  read  particular  chap 
ters  of  the  bible  to  him,  at  his  own  request,  creating  an 
impression  that  the  Vineyarder  was  thinking  more  of  his 
end  than  of  any  interests  connected  with  this  life.  Such 
might  have  been,  probably  was,  the  case,  until  the  seeming 
return  of  what  had  once  been  deemed  good  luck  awakened 
old  desires,  and  brought  out  traits  of  character  that  were 
about  to  be  lost  in  the  near  views  of  a  future  world.  All 
this  Roswell  saw  and  noted,  and  the  reflections  produced 
by  his  own  perilous  condition,  the  certain  loss  of  so  many 
companions,  the  probable  death  of  Daggett,  and  the  hum 
ble  but  impressive  example  and  sympathy  of  Stimson,  were 


THE    SEA    LIONS.  387 

such  as  would  have  delighted  the  tender  spirit  of  Mary 
Pratt,  could  she  have  known  of  their  existence. 

But  the  great  consideration  of  the  moment,  the  centre 
of  all  the  hopes  and  fears  of  our  sealers,  was  the  rebuilding 
of  the  mutilated  Sea  Lion.  Although  the  long  thaw  did 
so  much  for  them,  the  reader  is  not  to  regard  it  as  such  a 
spell  of  warm  weather  as  one  enjoys  in  May  within  the 
temperate  zone.  There  were  no  flowers,  no  signs  of  vege 
tation,  and  whenever  the  wind  ceased  to  blow  smartly  from 
the  northward,  there  was  frost.  At  two  or  three  intervals 
cold  snaps  set  in  that  looked  seriously  like  a  return  to 
winter,  and,  at  the  end  of  the  third  week  of  pleasant 
weather  mentioned,  it  began  to  blow  a  gale  from  the  south 
ward,  to  snow,  and  to  freeze.  The  storm  commenced 
about  ten  in  the  forenoon ;  ere  the  sun  went  down,  the 
days  then  being  of  great  length,  every  passage  around  the 
dwelling  was  already  blocked  up  with  banks  of  snow. 
Several  times  had  the  men  asked  permission  to  remove  the 
sails  from  the  house,  to  admit  air  and  light;  but  it  was  now 
found  that  the  tent-like  verandah  they  formed  was  of  as 
much  use  as  it  had  been  at  any  time  during  the  season. 
Without  it,  indeed,  it  would  not  have  been  possible  for  the 
people  to  quit  their  dwelling  during  three  entire  days. 
Everything  like  work  was,  of  course,  suspended  during  this 
tempest,  which  seriously  menaced  the  unfortunate  sealers 
with  the  necessity  of  again  breaking  up  their  schooner, 
now  nearly  completed,  with  a  view  again  to  keep  them 
selves  from  freezing.  The  weather  was  not  so  intensely 
cold  as  it  had  been,  continuously,  for  months  during  the 
past  winter;  but,  coming  as  it  did,  after  so  long  a  spell  of 
what  might  be  considered  as  a  balmy  atmosphere  in  that 
region,  it  found  the  people  unbraced  and  little  prepared  for 
it.  At  no  time  was  the  thermometer  lower  than  twenty 
degrees  below  zero ;  this  was  near  morning,  after  a  sharp 
and  stinging  night;  nor  was  it  for  any  succession  of  hours 
much  below  zero.  But  zero  was  now  hard  to  bear,  and 
fires,  and  good  fires  too,  were  absolutely  necessary  to  keep 
the  men  from  suffering,  as  well  as  from  despondency.  Per 
haps  the  spectacle  of  Daggett,  dying  from  the  effects  of 
frost  before  their  eyes,  served  to  increase  the  uneasiness  of 
the  people,  and  to  cause  them  to  be  less  sparing  of  the  fuel 
33* 


388  THE    :»EA    LIONS. 

than  persons  in  their  situation  ought  to  have  been.  It  is 
certain  that  a  report  was  brought  to  Roswell,  in  the  height 
of  the  tempest,  and  when  the  thermometer  was  at  the  lowest, 
that  there  was  not  wood  enough  left  from  the  plunder  of 
the  two  vessels,  exclusively  of  that  which  had  been  worked 
up  in  the  repairs,  to  keep  the  fires  going  eight-and-forty 
hours  longer !  It  was  true,  a  little  wood,  intended  to  be 
used  in  the  homeward  passage,  enough  to  last  as  far  as  Rio 
possibly,  had  been  used  in  stowing  the  hold  ;  and  that  might 
be  got  at  first,  if  it  ever  ceased  to  snow.  Without  that  ad 
dition  to  the  stock  in  the  house,  it  would  not  be  within  the 
limits  of  probability  to  suppose  the  people  could  hold  out 
against  the  severity  of  such  weather  a  great  while  longer. 

Every  expedient  that  could  be  devised  to  save  wood,  and 
to  obtain  warmth  from  other  sources,  was  resorted  to,  of 
course,  by  Roswell's  orders.  Lamps  were  burned  with  great 
freedom ;  not  little  vessels  invented  to  give  light,  but  such 
torches  as  one  sees  at  the  lighting  up  of  a  princely  court 
yard  on  the  occasion  of  a  fete,  in  which  wicks  are  made 
by  the  pound,  and  unctuous  matter  is  used  by  the  gallon. 
Old  canvass  and  elephants'  oil  supplied  the  materials;  and 
the  spare  camboose,  which  had  been  brought  over  to  the 
house  to  be  set  up  there,  while  the  other  galley  was  being 
placed  on  board,  very  well  answered  the  purpose  of  a  lamp. 
Some  warmth  was  obtained  by  these  means,  but  much  more 
of  a  glaring  and  unpleasant  light. 

It  was  during  the  height  of  this  tempest  that  the  soul  of 
Daggett  took  its  flight  towards  the  place  of  departed  spirits, 
in  preparation  for  the  hour  when  it  was  to  be  summoned 
before  the  judgment-seat  of  God.  Previously  to  his  death, 
the  unfortunate  Vineyarder  held  a  frank  and  confidential 
discourse  with  Roswell.  As  his  last  hour  approached,  his 
errors  and  mistakes  became  more  distinctly  apparent,  as  is 
usual  with  men,  while  his  sins  of  omission  seemed  to  crowd 
the  vista  of  by-gone  days.  Then  it  was  that  the  whole 
earth  did  not  contain  that  which,  in  his  dying  eyes,  would 
prove  an  equivalent  for  one  hour  passed  in  a  sincere,  de 
vout,  and  humble  service  of  the  Deity ! 

"I'm  afraid  that  I've  loved  money  most  too  well,"  he 
said  to  Roswell,  not  an  hour  before  he  drew  his  last  breath; 
"  but  I,  hope  it  was  not  so  much  for  myself,  as  for  others. 


THE     SEA     LIONS.  389 

A.  wife  and  children,  Gar'ner,  tie  a  man  to  ;arth  in  a  most 
unaccountable  manner.  Sealers'  companions  are  used  to 
hearing  of  misfortunes,  and  the  Vineyard  women  know 
that  few  on  'em  live  to  see  a  husband  at  their  side  in  old 
age.  Still,  it  is  h  ird  on  a  mother  and  wife,  to  1'arn  that 
her  chosen  friend  has  been  cut  off  in  the  pride  of  his  days 
and  in  a  distant  land.  Poor  Betsey  !  It  would  have  been 
better  for  us  both,  had  we  been  satisfied  with  the  little  we 
had ;  for  now  the  good  woman  will  have  to  look  to  all 
matters  for  herself." 

Daggett  now  remained  silent  for  some  time,  though  his 
lips  moved,  most  probably  in  prayer.  It  was  a  melancholy 
sight  to  see  a  man  in  the  vigour  of  his  manhood,  whose 
voice  was  strong,  and  whose  heart  was  still  beating  with 
vigour  and  vitality,  standing,  as  it  were,  on  the  brink  of  a 
precipice,  down  which  all  knew  he  was  to  be  so  speedily 
hurled.  But  the  decree  had  gone  forth,  and  no  human 
skill  could  arrest  it.  Shortly  after  the  confession  and 
lamentation  we  have  recorded,  the  decay  reached  the 
vitals,  and  the  machine  of  clay  stopped.  To  avoid  the  un 
pleasant  consequences  of  keeping  the  body  in  so  warm  a 
place,  it  was  buried  in  the  snow  at  a  short  distance  from 
the  house,  within  an  hour  after  it  had  ceased  to  breathe. 

When  Roswell  Gardiner  saw  this  man,  who  had  so  long 
adhered  to  him,  like  a  leech,  in  the  pursuit  of  gold,  laid  a 
senseless  corpse  among  the  frozen  flakes  of  the  antarctic 
seas,  he  felt  that  a  lively  admonition  of  the  vanity  of  the 
world  was  administered  to  himself.  How  little  had  he 
been  able  to  foresee  all  that  had  happened,  and  how  mis 
taken  had  been  his  own  calculations  and  hopes !  What, 
then,  was  that  intellect  of  which  he  had  been  so  proud,  and 
what  reason  had  he  to  rely  on  himself  in  those  matters  that 
lay  equally  beyond  the  cradle  and  the  grave  —  that  incom 
prehensible  past,  and  the  unforeseen  future,  towards  which 
all  those  in  existence  were  hastening  !  Roswell  had  received 
many  lessons  in  humility,  the  most  useful  of  all  the  lessons 
that  man  can  receive  in  connection  with  the  relation  that 
really  exists  between  the  Deity  and  himself.  Often  had  he 
wondered,  while  reading  the  Bible  Mary  Pratt  had  put  into 
his  hand,  at  the  stubborn  manner  in  which  the  chosen 
people  of  God  had  returned  to  their  "  idols,"  and  their 


390  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

"  groves,"  and  their  "  high  places ;"  but  he  was  now  made 
to  understand  that  others  still  erred  in  this  great  particular, 
and  that  of  all  the  idols  men  worship,  that  of  self  was  per 
haps  the  most  objectionable. 


CHAPTER  XXVIII. 

"Long  swoln  in  drenching  rains,  seeds,  germs,  and  buds 
Start  at  the  touch  of  vivifying  beams. 
Moved  by  their  sef  ret  force,  the  vital  lymph 
Diffusive  runs,  and  spreads  o'er  wood  and  field 
A  flood  of  verdure." 

WILCOX. 

AT  length  it  came  to  be  rumoured  among  the  sealers 
that  the  fires  must  be  permitted  to  go  out,  or  that  the  mate 
rials  used  for  making  the  berths,  and  various  other  fixtures 
of  the  house,  must  be  taken  to  supply  the  stove.  It  was 
when  it  got  to  be  known  that  the  party  was  reduced  to  this 
sad  dilemma,  that  Roswell  broke  through  the  bank  of  snow 
that  almost  covered  the  house,  and  got  so  far  into  the  open 
air  as  to  be  able  to  form  some  estimate  of  the  probable  con 
tinuance  of  the  present  cold  weather.  The  thermometer, 
within  the  bank  of  snow,  but  outside  of  the  building,  then 
stood  at  twenty  below  zero ;  but  it  was  much  colder  in  the 
unobstructed  currents  of  as  keen  and  biting  a  south  wind 
as  ever  came  howling  across  the  vast  fields  of  ice  that 
covered  the  polar  basin.  The  snow  had  long  ceased,  but 
not  until  an  immense  quantity  had  fallen ;  nearly  twice  as 
much,  Roswell  and  Hazard  thought,  as  they  had  seen  on 
the  rocks  at  any  time  that  winter. 

"  I  see  no  signs  of  a  change,  Mr.  Hazard,"  Roswell  re 
marked,  shivering  with  the  intensity  of  the  cold.  "  We 
had  better  go  back  into  the  house  before  we  get  chilled, 
for  we  have  no  fire  now  to  go  to,  to  warm  ourselves.  It  is 
much  warmer  within  doors,  than  it  is  in  the  open  air,  fire 
or  no  fire." 

"  There  are  many  reasons  for  .hat,  Captain  Gar'ner,' 


THE     SEA     LIONS.  391 

answered  the  mate.  "  So  many  bodies  in  so  small  a  space, 
the  shelter  from  the  wind  and  outer  air,  and  the  snow 
banks,  all  help  us.  I  think  we  shall  find  the  thermometer 
indoors  at  a  pretty  comfortable  figure  this  morning." 

On  examining  it,  it  was  found  to  stand  at  only  fifteen 
below  zero,  making  a  difference  of  five  degrees  in  favour 
of  the  house,  as  compared  with  the  sort  of  covered  gallery 
under  the  tent,  and  probably  of  five  more,  as  compared  with 
the  open  air. 

On  a  consultation,  it  was  decided  that  all  hands  should 
eat  a  hearty  meal,  remove  most  of  their  clothes,  and  get 
within  the  coverings  of  their  berths,  to  see  if  it  would  not 
be  possible  to  wear  out  the  cold  spell,  in  some  tolerable 
comfort,  beneath  rugs  and  blankets.  On  the  whole,  it  was 
thought  that  the  berths  might  be  made  more  serviceable 
by  this  expedient,  than  by  putting  their  materials  into  the 
stoves.  Accordingly,  within  an  hour  after  Roswell  and  his 
mate  had  returned  from  their  brief  out-door  excursion,  the 
whole  party  was  snugly  bestowed  under  piles  of  rugs, 
clothes,  sails,  and  whatever  else  might  be  used  to  retain 
the  animal  heat  near  the  body,  and  exclude  cold.  In  this 
manner,  six-and-thirty  hours  were  passed,  not  a  man  of 
them  all  having  the  courage  to  rise  from  his  lair,  and  en 
counter  the  severity  of  the  climate,  now  unrelieved  by  any 
thing  like  a  fire. 

Roswell  had  slept  most  of  the  time,  during  the  last  ten 
hours,  and  in  this  he  was  much  like  all  around  him.  A 
general  feeling  of  drowsiness  had  come  over  the  men,  and 
the  legs  and  feet  of  many  among  them,  notwithstanding 
the  quantity  of  bed-clothes  that  were,  in  particular,  piled 
on  that  part  of  their  person,  were  sensitively  alive  to  the 
cold.  No  one  ever  knew  how  low  the  thermometer  went 
that  fearful  night ;  but  a  sort  of  common  consciousness  pre 
vailed,  that  nothing  the  men  had  yet  seen,  or  felt,  equalled 
its  chill  horrors.  The  cold  had  got  into  the  house,  con 
verting  every  article  it  contained  into  a  mass  of  frost.  The 
berths  ceased  to  be  warm,  and  the  smallest  exposure  of  a 
shoulder,  hand,  or  ears,  soon  produced  pain.  The  heads 
of  very  many  of  the  party  were  affected,  and  breathing  be 
came  difficult  and  troubled.  A  numbness  began  to  steal 
over  the  lower  limbs;  and  this  was  the  last  unpleasant  sen- 


392  THE    SEA     LIONS. 

sation  remembered  by  Roswell,  when  he  fell  into  another 
short  and  disturbed  slumber.  The  propensity  to  sleep  was 
very  general  now,  though  many  struggled  against  it,  know 
ing  it  was  the  usual  precursor  of  death  by  freezing. 

Our  hero  never  knew  how  long  he  slept  in  the  last  nap 
he  took  on  that  memorable  occasion.  When  he  awoke,  he 
found  a  bright  light  blazing  in  the  hut,  and  heard  some  one 
moving  about  the  camboose.  Then  his  thoughts  reverted 
to  himself,  and  to  the  condition  of  his  limbs.  On  trying  to 
rub  his  feet  together,  he  found  them  so  nearly  without  sen 
sation  as  to  make  the  consciousness  of  their  touching  each 
other  almost  out  of  the  question.  Taking  the  alarm  at  once, 
he  commenced  a  violent  friction,  until  by  slow  degrees  he 
could  feel  that  the  nearly  stagnant  blood  was  getting  again 
into  motion.  So  great  had  been  RoswelPs  alarm,  and  so 
intent  his  occupation,  that  he  took  no  heed  of  the  person 
who  was  busy  at  the  camboose,  until  the  man  appeared  at 
the  side  of  his  berth,  holding  a  tin  pot  in  his  hand.  It  was 
Stimson,  up  and  dressed,  without  his  skins,  and  seemingly 
in  perfect  preservation. 

"Here's  some  hot  coffee,  Captain  Gar'ner,"  said  the 
provident  boat-steerer,  "  and  then  turn  out.  The  wind  has 
shifted,  by  the  marcy  of  God,  and  it  has  begun  to  rain. 
Now,  I  think  we  may  have  summer  in  'arnest,  as  summer 
comes  among  these  sealin'  islands." 

Roswell  took  six  or  eight  swallows  of  the  coffee,  which 
was  smoking  hot,  and  instantly  felt  the  genial  influence 
diffused  over  his  whole  frame.  Sending  Stephen  to  the 
other  berths  with  this  timely  beverage,  he  now  sat  up  in  hifc 
berth,  and  rubbed  his  feet  and  legs  with  his  hands.  The 
exercise,  friction,  and  hot  coffee,  soon  brought  him  round  ; 
and  he  sprang  out  of  his  berth,  and  was  quickly  dressed. 
Stimson  had  lighted  a  fire  in  the  camboose,  using  the  very 
last  of  the  wood,  and  the  warmth  was  beginning  to  diffuse 
itself  through  the  building.  But  the  change  in  the  wind, 
and  the  consequent  melioration  of  the  temperature,  proba 
bly  alone  saved  the  whole  of  the  Oyster  Pond  crew  from 
experiencing  the  dire  fate  of  that  of  the  Vineyard  craft. 

Stephen  got  man  after  man  out  of  his  berth,  by  doses  of 
the  steaming  coffee ;  and  the  blood  being  thus  stimulated, 
by  the  aid  of  friction,  everybody  was  soon  up  and  stirring. 


THE    SEA    LIONS.  303 

It  was  found,  on  inquiry,  that  all  three  of  the  blacks  had 
toes  or  ears  frozen,  and  with  them  the  usual  application  of 
snow  became  necessary;  but  the  temperature  of  the  house 
soon  got  to  be  so  high  as  to  render  the  place  quite  comfort 
able.  Warm  food  being  deemed  very  essential,  Stephen 
had  put  a  supply  of  beans  and  pork  into  his  coppers ;  and 
the  frost  having  been  extracted  from  a  quantity  of  the 
bread  by  soaking  it  in  cold  water,  a  hearty  meal  of  good, 
hot,  and  most  nourishing  food,  was  made  by  all  hands. 
This  set  our  sealers  up,  no  more  complaints  of  the  frost 
being  heard. 

It  was,  indeed,  no  longer  very  cold.  The  thermometer 
was  up  to  twenty-six  above  zero  in  the  house  when  Roswell 
turned  out;  and  the  cooking  process,  together  with  Ste 
phen's  tires  and  the  shift  of  wind,  soon  brought  the  mer 
cury  up  to  forty.  This  was  a  cheering  temperature  for 
those  who  had  been  breathing  the  polar  air;  and  the  influ 
ence  of  the  north-east  gale  continued  to  increase.  The 
rain  and  thaw  produced  another  deluge;  and  the  cliffs  pre 
sented,  for  several  hours,  a  sight  that  might  have  caused 
Niagara  to  hide  her  head  in  mortification.  These  sublime 
scenes  are  of  frequent  occurrence  amid  the  solitudes  of  the 
earth;  the  occasional  phenomena  of  nature  often  surpass 
ing  in  sublimity  and  beauty  her  rarest  continued  efforts. 

The  succeeding  day  the  rain  ceased,  and  summer  ap 
peared  to  have  come  in  reality.  It  is  true  that  at  mid-day 
the  thermometer  in  the  shade  stood  at  only  forty-eight;  but 
in  the  sun  it  actually  rose  to  seventy.  Let  those  who  have 
ever  experienced  the  extremes  of  heat  and  cold  imagine 
the  delight  with  which  our  sealers  moved  about  under  such 
a  sun!  All  excess  of  clothing  was  thrown  aside;  and 
many  of  the  men  actually  pursued  their  work  in  their  shirt 
sleeves. 

As  the  snow  had  vanished  quite  as  suddenly  as  it  came, 
everything  and  everybody  was  now  in  active  motion.  Not 
a  man  of  the  crew  was  disposed  to  run  the  risk  of  encoun 
tering  any  more  cold  on  Sealer's  Land.  Roswell  himself 
was  of  opinion  that  the  late  severe  weather  was  the  dying 
effort  of  the  winter,  and  that  no  more  cold  was  to  be  ex 
pected  ;  and  Stimson  agreed  with  him  in  this  notion.  The 
sails  were  taken  down  from  around  the  house,  and  those 


394  THE    SEA    HONS. 

articles  it  was  intended  to  carry  away  were  transferred  to 
the  schooner  as  fast  as  the  difficulties  of  the  road  would 
allow.  While  his  mates  were  carrying  on  this  duty,  our 
young  master  took  an  early  occasion  to  examine  the  state 
of  matters  generally  on  the  island.  With  this  view  he 
ascended  to  the  plain,  and  went  half-way  up  the  mountain, 
desiring  to  get  a  good  look  into  the  offing. 

It  was  soon  ascertained  that  the  recent  deluge  had  swept 
all  the  ice  and  every  trace  of  the  dead  into  the  sea.  The 
body  of  Daggett  had  disappeared,  with  the  snow-bank  in 
which  it  had  been  buried;  and  all  the  carcases  of  the  seals 
had  been  washed  away.  In  a  word,  the  rocks  were  as 
naked  and  as  clean  as  if  man's  foot  had  never  passed  over 
them.  From  the  facts  that  skeletons  of  seals  had  been 
found  strewed  along  the  north  shore,  and  the  present  void, 
Roswell  was  led  to  infer  that  the  late  storm  had  been  one 
of  unusual  intensity,  and  most  probably  of  a  character  to 
occur  only  at  long  intervals. 

But  the  state  of  the  ice  was  the  point  of  greatest  interest. 
The  schooner  could  now  be  got  ready  for  sea  in  a  week, 
and  that  easily ;  but  there  she  lay,  imbedded  in  a  field  of 
ice  that  still  covered  nearly  the  whole  of  the  waters  within 
the  group.  As  Roswell  stood  on  the  cliffs  which  overlooked 
the  cove,  he  calculated  the  distance  it  would  be  necessary 
to  take  the  schooner  through  the  ice  by  sawing  and  cutting, 
and  that  through  a  field  known  to  be  some  four  feet  thick, 
at  five  good  miles  at  least.  So  Herculean  did  this  task  ap 
pear  to  be,  that  he  even  thought  of  abandoning  his  vessel 
altogether,  and  of  setting  out  in  the  boats,  as  soon  as  the 
summer  was  fairly  commenced.  On  reflection,  however, 
this  last  plan  was  reserved  as  a  dernier  ressort,  the  danger 
of  encountering  the  tempests  of  those  seas  in  a  whale-boat, 
.without  covering  or  fire,  being  much  too  great  to  be  thought 
of,  so  long  as  any  reasonable  alternative  offered. 

The  bergs  to  the  southward  were  in  motion,  and  a  large 
fleet  of  them  was  putting  to  sea,  as  it  might  be,  coming  in 
^om  those  remote  and  then  unknown  regions  in  which 
•>tey  were  formed.  From  the  mountain,  our  hero  counted 
•  least  a  hundred,  all  regularly  shaped,  with  tops  like  that 
of  table-land,  and  with  even,  regular  sides,  and  upright  at 
titudes.  It  was  very  desirable  to  get  ahead  of  the^e  new 


THE    SEA    LIONS.  395 

maritime  Alps,  for  the  ocean  to  the  northward  was  un 
usually  clear  of  ice  of  all  kinds,  that  lodged  between  the 
islands  excepted. 

So  long  as  it  was  safe  to  calculate  on  the  regular  changes 
of  the  seasons,  Roswell  knew  that  patience  and  vigilance 
would  serve  his  turn,  by  bringing  everything  round  in  its 
proper  time  and  place.  But  it  was  by  no  means  certain 
that  it  was  a  usual  occurrence  for  the  Great  Bay  to  be 
crammed  with  field-ice,  as  had  happened  the  past  winter  ; 
if  the  actual  state  of  the  surrounding  waters  were  an  ex 
ception  instead  of  the  rule.  On  examining  the  shores, 
however,  it  was  found  that  the  rain  and  melted  snow  had 
created  a  sort  of  margin,  and  that  the  strong  winds  which 
had  been  blowing,  and  which  in  fact  were  still  blowing, 
had  produced  a  gradually  increasing  attrition,  until  a  space 
existed  between  the  weather-side  of  the  field  and  the  rocks 
that  was  some  thirty  fathoms  wide.  This  was  an  important 
discovery,  and  brought  up  a  most  grave  question  for  deci 
sion. 

Owing  to  the  shape  of  the  surrounding  land,  it  would  not 
be  possible  for  the  ice  to  float  out  in  a  body,  for  two  or 
three  months  to  come ;  or  until  so  much  had  melted  as  to 
leave  room  for  the  field  to  pass  the  capes  and  head-lands. 
It  never  could  have  entered  the  bay  for  the  same  reason, 
but  for  the  resistless  power  of  a  field  that  extended  leagues 
out  into  the  ocean,  where,  acted  on  jointly  by  wind  and 
tide,  it  came  down  with  a  momentum  that  was  resistless, 
ripping  and  tearing  the  edges  of  the  field  as  if  they  had 
been  so  much  freshly  turned  up  mould.  It  was,  then,  a 
question  how  to  get  the  schooner  out  of  her  present  bed, 
and  into  clear  water. 

The  reader  will  probably  remember  that,  on  her  first 
arrival  at  the  group,  the  Sea  Lion  had  entered  the  Great 
Bay  from  the  southward ;  while,  in  her  subsequent  effort  to 
get  north,  she  had  gone  out  by  the  opposite  passage.  Now, 
it  occurred  to  Roswell  that  he  might  escape  by  the  former 
of  these  routes  more  readily  than  by  the  latter,  and  for  the 
following  reasons:  —  No  field-ice  had  ever  blocked  up  the 
southern  passage,  which  was  now  quite  clear,  though  the 
approach  to  it  just  then  was  choked  by  the  manner  in 
which  the  north-east  gala  that  was  still  blowing,  pressed 
34* 


396  THE    SEA    HONS. 

home  against  the  rocks  the  field  that  so  nearly  filled  the 
bay.  A  shift  of  wind,  however,  must  soon  come ;  and 
when  that  change  occurred,  it  was  certain  that  this  field 
would  move  in  an  opposite  direction,  leaving  the  margin 
of  open  water,  that  has  already  been  mentioned,  all  along 
the  rocks.  The  distance  was  considerable,  it  is  true — riot 
less  than  fifteen  miles — and  the  whole  of  it  was  to  be  made 
quite  close  to  sharp  angular  rocks  that  would  penetrate  the 
schooner's  sides  almost  as  readily  as  an  axe,  in  the  event 
of  a  nip;  but  this  danger  might  be  avoided  by  foresight, 
and  a  timely  attention  to  the  necessities  of  the  case.  See 
ing  no  more  available  plan  to  get  the  vessel  out  of  her  pre 
sent  duresse,  the  mates  came  readily  into  this  scheme,  and 
preparations  were  made  to  carry  it  out.  As  the  cove  was 
so  near  the  north-east  end  of  Sealer's  Land,  it  may  be  well 
to  explain  that  the  reason  this  same  mode  of  proceeding 
could  not  be  carried  out  in  a  northern  direction,  was  the 
breadth  of  the  field  seaward,  and  the  danger  of  following 
the  north  shore  when  the  solid  ice  did  leave  it,  on  account 
of  the  quantities  of  broken  fragments  that  were  tossing  and 
churning  in  :ts  front,  far  as  the  eye  could  reach  from  the 
cliffs  themselves. 

The  third  day  after  the  commencement  of  the  thaw,  the 
wind  came  lound  again  from  the  south-west,  blowing  hea 
vily.  As  was  expected,  this  soon  began  to  set  the  field  in 
motion,  driving  it  over  towards  the  volcano,  and  at  the 
same  time  northerly.  About  six  in  the  morning,  Hazard 
brought  a  report  to  Roswell  that  a  margin  of  open  water 
was  beginning  to  form  all  along  under  the  cliffs,  while 
there  was  great  danger  that  the  channel  which  had  been 
cut  from  the  schooner  to  the  nearest  point  beneath  the 
rocks,  in  readiness  for  this  very  contingency,  might  be 
closed  by  the  pressure  of  the  ice  without,  on  that  within 
the  cove.  No  time  was  to  be  lost,  therefore,  if  it  was  in 
tended  to  move  the  craft  on  this  shift  of  wind.  The  dis 
tance  that  had  been  sawed  through  to  make  the  channel 
just  named,  did  not  exceed  a  hundred  yards.  The  passage 
was  not  much  wider  than  the  schooner's  breadth  ;  and  it 
will  be  easily  understood  that  it  was  to  the  last  degree  im 
portant  to  carry  her  through  this  strait  as  soon  as  possible 
Although  many  useful  articles  were  scattered  about  on  the 


THE     SEA     LIONS.  397 

ice,  and  several  remained  to  be  brought  over  the  rocks 
from  the  house,  the  order  was  given  to  get  out  lines,  and 
to  move  the  vessel  at  once,  the  men  set  to  work  with  hearty 
good  will,  another  glimpse  of  home  rising  before  their  ima 
ginations;  and,  in  five  minutes  after  Hazard  had  made  his 
communication,  the  Sea  Lion  had  gone  six  or  eight  times 
her  length  towards  the  cliffs.  Then  came  the  pinch !  Had 
not  the  ice  been  solid  between  the  cape  and  the  berth  just 
before  occupied  by  the  schooner,  she  would  have  been 
hopelessly  nipped  by  the  closing  of  the  artificial  channel. 
As  it  was,  she  was  caught,  and  her  progress  was  arrested , 
but  the  field  took  a  cant,  in  consequence  of  the  resistance 
of  the  solid  ice  that  filled  the  whole  cove  to  the  eastward 
of  the  channel ;  and,  before  any  damage  was  done,  the 
latter  began  to  open  even  faster  than  it  had  come  together. 
The  instant  the  craft  was  released  the  sealers  manned  their 
hauling  lines  again,  and  ran  her  up  to  the  rocks  with  a 
hurrah !  The  margin  of  water  was  just  opening,  but  so 
prompt  had  been  the  movement  of  the  men  that  it  was  not 
yet  wide  enough  to  permit  the  vessel  to  go  any  further; 
and  it  was  found  necessary  to  wait  until  the  passage  was 
sufficiently  wide  to  enable  her  to  move  ahead.  The  inter 
vening  time  was  occupied  in  bringing  to  the  craft  the  arti 
cles  left  behind. 

By  nine  o'clock  everything  was  on  board ;  the  winding 
channel  that  followed  the  sinuosities  of  the  coast  could  be 
traced  far  as  the  eye  could  see;  the  lines  were  manned; 
and  the  word  was  again  given  to  move.  Roswell  now  felt 
that  he  was  engaged  in  much  the  most  delicate  of  all  his 
duties.  The  desperate  run  through  the  fleet  of  bergs,  and 
the  second  attempt  to  get  to  sea,  were  not  in  certain  parti 
culars  as  hazardous  as  this.  The  field  had  been  setting 
back  and  forth  now,  for  several  weeks ;  the  margin  of  clear 
water  increasing  by  the  attrition  at  each  return  to  the 
rocks ;  and  it  was  known  by  observation  that  these  changes' 
often  occurred  at  very  short  notices.  Should  the  wind  haul 
round  with  the  sun,  or  one  of  the  unaccountable  currents 
of  those  seas  intervene  before  the  south-east  cape  was 
reached,  the  schooner  would  probably  be  broken  into  splin 
ters,  or  ground  into  powder,  in  the  course  of  some  two  or 


398  THE     SEA     LIONS. 

three  hours.  It  was  all-important,  therefore,  to  lose  not  a 
moment. 

Several  times  in  the  course  of  the  first  hour,  the  move 
ment  of  the  schooner  was  arrested  by  the  want  of  sufficient 
room  to  pass  between  projecting  points  in  the  cliffs  and  the 
edge  of  the  ice.  On  two  of  these  occasions  passages  were 
cut  with  the  saw,  the  movement  of  the  field  not  answering 
to  the  impatience  of  the  sealers.  At  the  end  of  that  most 
momentous  hour,  however,  the  craft  had  been  hauled  ahead 
a  mile  and  a  half,  and  had  reached  a  curvature  in  the  coast 
where  the  margin  of  open  water  was  more  than  fifty  fathoms 
wide,  and  the  tracking  of  the  vessel  became  easy  and  rapid. 
By  two  o'clock  the  Sea  Lion  was  at  what  might  be  called 
the  bottom  of  the  Great  Bay,  some  three  or  four  leagues 
from  the  cove,  and  at  the  place  where  the  long  low  cape 
began  to  run  out  in  a  south-easterly  direction.  As  the 
wind  could  now  be  felt  over  the  rocks,  the  foretopsail  was 
set,  as  well  as  the  lower  sails,  the  latter  being  mainly  be 
calmed,  however,  by  the  land ;  when  the  people  were  all 
taken  on  board,  the  craft  moving  faster  under  her  canvass 
than  by  means  of  the  hauling  lines.  The  wind  was  very 
fresh,  and  in  half  an  hour  more  the  south-east  cape  came 
in  sight,  close  as  were  the  navigators  to  the  rocks.  Ten 
minutes  later,  the  Sea  Lion  was  under  reefed  sails,  stretch 
ing  off  to  the  southward  and  eastward,  in  perfectly  clear 
water ! 

At  first,  Roswell  Gardiner  was  disposed  to  rejoice,  under 
the  impression  that  his  greatest  labour  had  been  achieved. 
A  better  look  at  the  state  of  things  around  him,  however, 
taught  the  disheartening  lesson  of  humility,  by  demon 
strating  that  they  had  in  truth  but  just  commenced. 

Although  there  was  scarcely  any  field-ice  to  the  south 
ward  of  the  group,  and  in  its  immediate  neighbourhood, 
there  was  a  countless  number  of  bergs.  It  is  true,  these 
floating  mountains  did  not  come  very  near  the  passage,  for 
the  depth  of  water  just  there  usually  brought  them  up  ere 
they  could  get  into  it;  nevertheless,  a  large  fleet  of  them 
was  blockading  the  entire  group,  far  as  the  eye  could  reach, 
looking  east,  west  and  south,  or  along  the  whole  line  of  the 
southern  coast.  It  was  at  first  questionable  whether,  and 
uoon  after  it  became  certain,  that  the  schooner  could  never 


THE     SEA     LIONS.  399 

beat  through  such  dangers.  Had  the  wind  been  fair,  the 
difficulty  would  have  been  insurmountable;  but  ahead,  and 
blowing  a  little  gale,  the  matter  was  out  of  the  question. 
Some  other  course  must  be  adopted. 

There  was  a  choice  of  alternatives.  One  was  to  go  en 
tirely  round  the  whole  group,  passing  to  the  eastward  of 
the  volcano,  where  no  one  of  the  party  had  ever  been ;  and 
the  other  was  to  follow  the  eastern  margin  of  the  bay,  keep 
ing  inside  of  it,  and  trusting  to  finding  some  opening  by 
which  the  schooner  could  force  her  way  into  clear  water 
to  the  northward.  After  a  very  brief  consultation  with  his 
mates,  Roswell  decided  on  attempting  the  last. 

As  the  course  now  to  be  steered  was  almost  dead  before 
the  wind,  the  little  craft,  lightened  of  so  much  of  her  upper 
works,  almost  flew  through  the  water.  The  great  source 
of  apprehension  felt  by  our  young  men  in  attempting  this 
new  expedient,  was  in  the  probability  that  the  field  would 
drift  home  to  the  rocks  in  the  north-east  quarter  of  the 
bay,  which,  with  a  south-west  wind,  was  necessarily  a  quar 
ter  to  leeward.  Should  this  prove  to  be  the  case,  it  might 
be  found  impossible  to  pass  ahead,  and  the  schooner  would 
be  caught  in  a  cul  de  sac ;  since  it  would  not  be  in  the 
power  of  her  people  to  track  her  back  again  in  the  teeth  of 
so  strong  a  wind.  Notwithstanding  these  probabilities,  on 
Roswell  went;  for  he  saw  plain  enough  that  at  such  a  mo 
ment  almost  anything  was  better  than  indecision. 

The  rate  at  which  the  little  craft  was  flying  before  a 
fresh  gale,  in  perfectly  smooth  water,  soon  put  our  sealers 
in  a  better  condition  to  form  closer  estimates  of  their 
chances.  The  look-outs  aloft,  one  of  whom  was  Hazard, 
the  first  officer,  sent  down  on  deck  constant  reports  of  what 
they  could  see. 

"  How  does  it  look  ahead,  now,  Mr.  Hazard?"  demanded 
Roswell,  about  five  in  the  afternoon,  just  as  his  schooner 
was  coming  close  under  the  smoking  sides  of  the  volcano, 
which  had  always  been  an  object  of  interest  to  him,  though 
he  had  never  found  time  to  visit  it  before.  "  Is  there  no 
danger  of  our  touching  the  ground,  close  in  as  we  are  to 
this  island?" 

"  I  think  not,  sir ;  when  I  landed  here,  we  kept  the  lead 
going  the  whole  time,  and  we  got  two  fathoms  quite  up  to 
34* 


400  THE     SEA    LIONS. 

the  shore.  In  my  judgment,  Captain  Gar'ner,  we  may  run 
down  along  this  land  as  bold  as  lions." 

"And  how  does  it  look  ahead?  I've  no  wish  to  get 
jammed  here,  close  aboard  of  a  volcano,  which  may  be 
choking  us  all  with  its  smoke  before  we  know  where  we 
are." 

"  Not  much  danger  of  that,  sir,  with  this  wind.  These 
volcanoes  are  nothin'  but  playthings,  a'ter  all.  The  vapour 

is  driving  off  towards  the  north-east That  was  a  crack, 

with  a  vengeance !" 

Just  as  Hazard  was  boasting  of  the  innocuous  character 
of  a  volcano,  that  near  them  fired  a  gun,  as  the  men  after 
wards  called  it,  casting  into  the  air  a  large  flight  of  cinders 
and  stones,  accompanied  by  a  sharp  flash  of  flame.  All 
the  lighter  materials  drove  away  to  leeward,  but  the  hea 
vier  followed  the  law  of  projectiles,  and  scattered  in  all 
directions.  Several  stones  of  some  size  fell  quite  close  to 
the  schooner,  and  a  few  smaller  actually  came  down  on  her 
decks. 

"  It  will  never  do  to  stop  here  to  boil  our  pot,"  cried 
Roswell  to  the  mate.  "  We  must  get  away  from  this,  Mr. 
Hazard,  as  fast  as  the  good  craft  can  travel !" 

"  Get 'away  it  is,  sir.  There  is  nothing  very  near  ahead 
to  stop  us ;  though  it  does  look  more  toward  the  east  cape 
as  if  the  field  was  jammed  in  that  quarter." 

"  Keep  all  your  eyes  about  you,  sir ;  and  look  out  espe 
cially  for  any  opening  among  the  smaller  islands  ahead.  I 
am  not  without  hope  that  the  currents  which  run  among 
them  may  give  us  a  clear  passage  in  that  quarter." 

These  words  explain  precisely  that  which  did  actually 
occur.  On  went  the  schooner,  almost  brushing  the  base  of 
the  volcano,  causing  Roswell  many  a  bound  of  the  heart, 
when  he  fancied  she  must  strike;  but  she  went  clear.  All 
this  time,  it  was  crack,  crack,  crack,  from  the  crater,  rum 
bling  sounds  and  heavy  explosions;  the  last  attended  by 
flames,  and  smoke  of  a  pitchy  darkness.  A  dozen  times  the 
Sea  Lion  had  very  narrow  escapes  when  nearest  to  the 
danger,  stones  of  a  weight  to  pass  through  her  decks  and 
bottom  falling  even  on  the  ice  outside  of  her ;  but  that  hand 
which  had  so  benevolently  stayed  various  other  evils,  was 
stretched  forth  to  save,  and  nothing  touched  the  schooner 


THE    SEA    LIONS.  401 

of  a  size  to  do  any  injury.  These  escapes  made  a  deep 
impiession  on  Roswell.  Until  the  past  winter  he  had  been 
accustomed  to  look  upon  things  and  events  as  matters  of 
course.  This  vacant  indifference,  so  common  to  men  in 
prosperity,  was  extended  even  to  the  sublimest  exhibition 
of  the  Almighty  power;  our  hero  seeing  nothing  in  the 
firmament  of  heaven,  of  a  clear  night,  but  the  twinkling 
lights  that  seemed  to  him  to  be  placed  there  merely  to  gar 
nish  and  illumine  the  darkness  of  this  globe.  Now,  how 
differently  did  he  look  upon  natural  objects,  and  their 
origin !  If  it  were  only  an  insect,  his  mind  presented  its 
wonderful  mechanism,  its  beauty,  its  uses.  No  star  seemed 
less  than  what  science  has  taught  us  that  it  is;  and  the 
power  of  the  Dread  Being  who  had  created  all,  who  go 
verned  all,  and  who  was  judge  of  all,  became  an  insepara 
ble  subject  of  contemplation,  as  he  looked  upon  the  least 
of  his  works.  Feelings  thus  softened  and  tempered  by 
humility,  easily  led  their  subject  to  the  reception  of  those 
leading  articles  of  the  Christian  faith  which  have  been  con 
secrated  by  the  belief  of  the  church  catholic  since  the  ages 
of  miraculous  guidance,  and  which  are  now  venerable  by 
time.  Bold  and  presuming  is  he  who  fancies  that  his  in 
tellect  can  rectify  errors  of  this  magnitude  and  antiquity, 
and  that  the  church  of  God  has  been  permitted  to  wallow 
on  in  a  ntost  fatal  idolatry  for  centuries,  to  be  extricated 
by  the  pretending  syllogisms  of  his  one-sided  and  narrow 
philosophy ! 

The  people  of  the  Sea  Lion  were  less  affected  by  what 
they  saw  than  their  young  commander.  Their  hearts  were 
light  with  the  prospect  of  a  speedy  release  from  the  hard 
ships  and  dangers  they  had  undergone;  and,  at  each  explo 
sion  of  the  volcano,  as  soon  as  out  of  reach  of  the  falling 
stones,  they  laughed,  and  asserted  that  the  mountain  was 
firing  a  salute  in  honour  of  their  departure.  Such  is  the 
difference  between  men  whose  hearts  and  spirits  have  sub 
mitted  to  the  law  of  faith,  and  those  who  live  on  in  the 
recklessness  of  the  passing  events  of  life  ! 

The  schooner  was  racing  past  a  rocky  islet,  beginning 
to  haul  more  on  a  wind,  as  she  made  the  circuit  of  the 
bay,  just  as  Hazard  came  to  the  conclusion  that  the  field 
had  drifted  home  on  the  outer  island  of  the  group,  and 


402  THE     SEA     LIONS. 

that  it  would  be  impossible  to  pass  into  clear  water  by 
going  on.  Turning  his  head  in  quest  of  some  ba),  or  other 
secure  place  in  which  the  craft  might  wait  for  a  favourable 
change,  he  saw  a  narrow  opening  to  leeward  of  the  islet  he 
had  passed  but  a  minute  before ;  and,  so  far  as  he  could 
perceive,  one  that  led  directly  out  to  sea. 

It  was  too  late  to  keep  away  for  the  entrance  of  the 
passage,  the  ice  being  too  close  at  hand  to  leeward ;  but, 
most  fortunately,  there  was  room  to  tack.  A  call  to  Ros- 
well  soon  caused  the  schooner  to  be  close  on  a  wind  ;  down 
went  her  helm,  and  round  she  came  like  a  top.  Sail  was 
shortened  in  stays,  and  by  the  time  the  little  craft  was 
ready  to  fall  off  for  the  passage,  she  had  nothing  on  her 
but  a  foretopsail,  jib,  and  a  close-reefed  mainsail.  Under 
this  canvass  she  glided  along,  almost  brushing  the  rocks 
of  the  islet,  but  without  touching.  In  twenty  minutes 
more  she  was  clear  of  the  group  altogether,  and  in  open 
water ! 

That  night  some  embarrassment  was  encountered  from 
broken  field-ice,  of  which  the  ocean  was  pretty  full ;  but 
by  exercising  great  vigilance,  no  serious  thump  occurred. 
Fortunately  the  period  of  darkness  was  quite  short,  the 
twilight  being  of  great  length  both  mornings  and  evenings; 
and  the  re-appearance  of  the  sun  cast  a  cheerful  glow  on 
the  face  of  the  troubled  waters. 

The  wind  held  at  south-west  for  three  days,  blowing 
heavily  the  whole  time.  By  the  second  night-fall  the  sea 
was  clear  of  ice,  and  everything  was  carried  on  the  schooner 
that  she  could  bear.  About  nine  o'clock  on  the  morning 
of  the  fourth  day  out,  a  speck  was  seen  rising  above  the 
ragged  outline  of  the  rolling  waves;  and  each  minute  it 
became  higher  and  more  distinct.  An  hour  or  two  later, 
the  Sea  Lion  was  staggering  along  before  a  westerly  gale, 
with  the  Hermit  of  Cape  Horn  on  her  larboard  beam,  dis 
tant  three  leagues.  How  many  trying  scenes  and  bitter 
moments  crowded  on  the  mind  of  young  Roswell  Gar 
diner,  as  he  recalled  all  that  had  passed  in  the  ten  months 
which  intervened  since  he  had  come  out  from  behind  the 
shelter  of  those  wild  rocks!  Stormy  as  was  that  sea,  and 
terrible  as  was  its  name  among  mariners,  coming,  as  he 
did,  from  one  still  more  stormy  and  terrible,  he  now  re- 


THE     SEA     LIONS. 


403 


garded  it  as  a  sort  of  place  of  refuge.  A  winter  there,  he 
well  knew,  would  be  no  trifling  undertaking,  but  he  had 
just  passed  a  winter  in  a  region  where  even  fuel  was  not 
to  be  found,  unless  carried  there.  Twenty  days  later  the 
Sea  Lion  sailed  again  from  Rio,  having  sold  all  the  sea- 
elephant  oil  that  remained,  and  bought  stores;  of  which, 
by  this  time,  the  vessel  was  much  in  want.  Most  of  the 
portions  of  the  provisions  that  were  left  had  been  damaged 
by  the  thawing  process ;  and  food  was  getting  to  be  abso 
lutely  necessary  to  her  people,  when  the  schooner  went 
again  into  the  noble  harbour  of  the  capital  of  Brazil. 
Then  succeeded  the  lassitude  and  calms  that  reign  about 
the  imaginary  line  that  marks  the  circuit  of  the  earth,  at 
that  point  which  is  ever  central  as  regards  the  sun,  and 
where  the  days  and  nights  are  always  equal.  No  inclina 
tion  of  the  earth's  axis  to  the  plane  of  its  orbit  affected  the 
climate  there,  which  knew  not  the  distinctions  of  summer 
and  winter;  or  which,  if  they  did  exist  at  all,  were  so 
faintly  marked  as  to  be  nearly  imperceptible. 

Twenty  days  later  the  schooner  was  standing  among 
some  low  sandy  keys,  under  short  canvass,  and  in  the 
south-east  trades.  By  her  movements  an  anchorage  was 
sought;  and  one  was  found  at  last,  where  the  craft  was 
brought  up,  boats  were  hoisted  out,  and  Roswell  Gardiner 
landed. 


CHAPTER  XXIX. 

"  If  every  ducat  in  six  thousand  ducats 
Were  in  six  parts,  and  every  part  a  ducat, 
I  would  not  draw  them ;  I  would  have  my  bond. 

SHAKSPEARE. 

THE  earth  had  not  stopped  in  its  swift  race  round  the 
sun  at  Oyster  Pond,  while  all  these  events  were  in  the 
course  of  occurrence  in  the  antarctic  seas.  The  summer 
had  passed,  that  summer  which  was  to  have  brought  back 
the  sealers ;  and  autumn  had  come  to  chill  the  hopes  as 
well  as  the  body.  Winter  did  not  bring  any  change.  No- 


404  THE     SEA     LIONS. 

thing  was  heard  of  Roswell  and  his  companions,  nor  could 
anything  have  been  heard  of  them  short  of  the  intervention 
of  a  miracle. 

Mary  Pratt  no  longer  mentioned  Roswell  in  her  prayers. 
She  fully  believed  him  to  be  dead ;  and  her  puritanical 
creed  taught  her  that  this,  the  sweetest  and  most  endearing 
of  all  the  rites  of  Christianity,  was  allied  to  a  belief  that  it 
was  sacrilege  to  entertain.  We  pretend  not  to  any  distinct 
impressions  on  this  subject  ourselves,  beyond  a  sturdy  pro- 
testant  disinclination  to  put  any  faith  in  the  abuses  of  pur 
gatory  at  least ;  but,  most  devoutly  do  we  wish  that  such 
petitions  could  have  the  efficacy  that  so  large  a  portion  of 
the  Christian  world  impute  to  them.  But  Mary  Pratt,  so 
much  better  than  we  can  lay  any  claim  to  be  in  all  essen 
tials,  was  less  liberal  than  ourselves  on  this  great  point  of 
doctrine.  Roswell  Gardiner's  name  now  never  passed  her 
lips  in  prayer,  therefore;  though  scarce  a  minute  went  by 
without  his  manly  person  being  present  to  her  imagina 
tion.  He  still  lived  in  her  heart,  a  shrine  from  which  she 
made  no  effort  to  expel  him. 

As  for  the  deacon,  age,  disease,  and  distress  of  mind, 
had  brought  him  to  his  last  hours.  The  passions  which  had 
so  engrossed  him  when  in  health,  now  turned  upon  his  na 
ture,  and  preyed  upon  his  vitals,  like  an  ill-omened  bird. 
It  is  more  than  probable  that  he  would  have  lived  some 
months,  possibly  some  years  longer,  had  not  the  evil  spirit 
of  covetousness  conspired  to  heighten  the  malady  that 
wasted  his  physical  frame.  As  it  was,  the  sands  of  lifb 
were  running  low;  and  the  skilful  Dr.  Sage,  himself,  had 
admitted  to  Mary  the  improbability  that  her  uncle  and  pro 
tector  could  long  survive. 

It  is  wonderful  how  the  interest  in  a  rich  man  suddenly 
revives  among  his  relatives  and  possible  heirs,  as  his  last 
hour  draws  near.  Deacon  Pratt  was  known  to  be  wealthy 
in  a  small  way ;  was  thought  to  possess  his  thirty  or  forty 
thousand  dollars,  which  was  regarded  as  wealth  among  the 
east-enders  thirty  years  since;  and  every  human  being  in 
Old  Suffolk,  whether  of  its  overwhelming  majority  or  of  its 
more  select  and  wiser  minority,  who  could  by  legal  possi 
bility  claim  any  right  to  be  remembered  by  the  dying  man, 
crowded  around  his  bed-side.  At  that  moment,  Mary  Pratt, 


THE     SEA     LIONS.  405 

who  had  so  long  nursed  his  diseases  and  mitigated  his  suf 
ferings,  was  compelled  to  appear  as  a  very  insignificant  and 
secondary  person.  Others  who  stood  in  the  same  degree 
of  consanguinity  to  the  dying  man,  and  two,  a  brother  and 
sister,  who  were  even  one  degree  closer,  had  their  claims, 
and  were  by  no  means  disposed  to  suffer  them  to  be  for 
gotten.  Gladly  would  poor  Mary  have  prayed  by  her  uncle's 
bed-side;  but  Parson  Whittle  had  assumed  this  solemn 
duty,  it  being  deemed  proper  that  one  who  had  so  long 
tilled  the  office  of  deacon,  should  depart  with  a  proper  at 
tention  to.the  usages  of  his  meeting.  Some  of  the  relatives 
who  had  lately  appeared,  and  who  were  not  so  conversant 
with  the  state  of  things  between  the  deacon  and  his  divine, 
complained  among  themselves  that  the  latter  made  too 
many  ill-timed  allusions  to  the  pecuniary  wants  of  the  con 
gregation;  and  that  he  had,  in  particular,  almost  as  much 
as  asked  the  deacon  to  make  a  legacy  that  would  enable 
those  who  were  to  stay  behind,  to  paint  the  meeting-house, 
erect  a  new  horse-shed,  purchase  some  improved  stoves, 
and  reseat  the  body  of  the  building.  These  modest  re 
quests,  it  was  whispered — for  all  passed  in  whispers  then — 
would  consume  not  less  than  a  thousand  dollars  of  the  dea 
con's  hard  earnings;  and  the  thing  was  mentioned  as  a 
wrong  done  him  who  was  about  to  descend  into  the  grave, 
where  nought  of  earth  could  avail  him  in  any  way. 

Close  was  the  siege  that  was  laid  to  Deacon  Pratt,  during 
the  last  week  of  his  life.  Many  were  the  hints  given  of  the 
necessity  of  his  making  a  will,  though  the  brother  and 
sister,  estimating  their  rights  as  the  law  established  them, 
said  but  little  on  the  subject,  and  that  little  was  rather 
against  the  propriety  of  annoying  a  man,  in  their  brother's 
condition,  with  business  of  so  perplexing  a  nature.  The 
fact  that  these  important  personages  set  their  faces  against 
the  scheme  had  due  weight,  and  most  of  the  relatives  began 
to  calculate  the  probable  amount  of  their  respective  shares 
under  the  law  of  distribution,  as  it  stood  in  that  day.  This 
excellent  and  surpassingly  wise  community  of  New  York 
had  not  then  reached  the  pass  of  exceeding  liberality  to 
wards  which  it  is  now  so  rapidly  tending.  In  that  day,  the 
debtor  was  not  yet  thought  of,  as  the  creditor's  next  heir, 
and  that  plausible  and  impracticable  desire  of  a  false  phi- 


406  1HE     SEA    LIONS. 

lanthropy,  which  is  termed  the  Homestead  Exemption  Law 
— impracticable  as  to  anything  like  a  just  and  equitable 
exemption  of  equal  amount  in  all  cases  of  indebtedness — 
was  riot  yet  dreamed  of.  New  York  was  then  a  sound  and 
healthful  community ;  making  its  mistakes,  doubtless,  as 
men  ever  will  err ;  but  the  control  of  things  had  not  yet 
passed  into  the  hands  of  sheer  political  empirics,  whose 
ignorance  and  quackery  were  stimulated  by  the  lowest  pas 
sion  for  majorities.  Among  other  things  that  were  then 
respected,  were  wills;  but  it  was  not  known  to  a  single 
individual,  among  all  those  who  thronged  the  dwelling  of 
Deacon  Pratt,  that  the  dying  man  had  ever  mustered  the 
self-command  necessary  to  make  such  an  instrument.  He 
was  free  to  act,  but  did  not  choose  to  avail  himself  of  his 
freedom.  Had  he  survived  a  few  years,  he  would  have 
found  himself  in  the  enjoyment  of  a  liberty  so  sublimated, 
that  he  could  not  lease,  or  rent  a  farm,  or  collect  a  common 
debt,  without  coming  under  the  harrow  of  the  tiller  of  the 
political  soil. 

The  season  had  advanced  to  the  early  part  of  April,  and 
that  is  usually  a  soft  and  balmy  month  on  the  sea-shore, 
though  liable  to  considerable  and  sudden  changes  of  tem 
perature.  On  the  day  to  which  we  now  desire  to  transfer 
the  scene,  the  windows  of  the  deacon's  bed-room  were 
open,  and  tne  soft  south  wind  fanned  his  hollow  and  pallid 
cheek.  jLfeath  was  near,  though  the  principle  of  life  strug 
gled  hard  with  the  King  of  Terrors.  It  was  now  that  that 
bewildered  and  Pharasaical  faith  which  had  so  long  held 
this  professor  of  religion  in  a  bondage  even  more  oppressive 
than  open  and  announced  sins,  most  felt  the  insufficiency 
of  the  creed  in  which  he  had  rather  been  speculating  than 
trusting  all  his  life,  to  render  the  passing  hour  composed 
and  secure.  There  had  always  been  too  much  of  self  in 
Deacon  Pratt's  moral  temperament,  to  render  his  belief  as 
humble  and  devout  as  it  should  be.  It  availed  him  not  a 
haJr,  now,  that  he  was  a  deacon,  or  that  he  had  made  long 
prayers  in  the  market-places,  where  men  could  see  him,  or 
that  he  had  done  so  much,  as  he  was  wont  to  proclaim,  for 
example's  sake.  All  had  not  sufficed  to  cleanse  his  heart 
of  worldly-mindedness,  and  he  now  groped  about  him,  ID 


THE     SEA     LIONS.  40? 

the  darkness  of  a  faith  obscured,  for  the  true  light  that  was 
to  illumine  his  path  to  another  world. 

The  doctor  had  ordered  the  room  cleared  of  all,  but  two 
or  three  of  the  dying  man's  nearest  relatives.  Among 
these  last,  however,  was  the  gentle  and  tender-hearted 
Mary,  who  loved  to  be  near  her  uncle,  in  this  his  greatest 
need.  She  no  longer  thought  of  his  covetousness,  of  his 
griping  usury,  of  his  living  so  much  for  self  and  so  little 
for  God.  While  hovering  about  the  bed,  a  message  reached 
her  that  Baiting  Joe  wished  to  see  her,  in  the  passage  that 
led  to  the  bed-room.  She  went  to  this  old  fisherman,  and 
found  him  standing  near  a  window  that  looked  towards  the 
east,  and  which  consequently  faced  the  waters  of  Gardiner's 
Bay. 

"  There  she  is,  Miss  Mary,"  said  Joe,  pointing  out  of 
the  window,  his  whole  face  in  a  glow,  between  joy  arid 
whiskey.  "  It  should  be  told  to  the  deacon  at  once,  that 
his  last  hours  might  be  happier  than  some  that  he  has 
passed  lately.  That's  she  —  though,  at  first,  I  did  not 
know  her." 

Mary  saw  a  vessel  standing  in  towards  Oyster  Pond,  and 
her  familiarity  with  objects  of  that  nature  was  such,  as  to 
tell  her  at  once  that  it  was  a  schooner ;  but  so  completely 
had  she  given  up  the  Sea  Lion,  that  it  did  not  occur  to  her 
that  this  could  be  the  long-missing  craft. 

"  At  what  are  you  pointing,  Joe?"  the  wondering  girl 
asked,  with  perfect  innocence. 

"  At  that  craft- — at  the  Sea  Lion  of  Sterling,  which  has 
been  so  long  set  down  as  missing,  but  which  has  turned 
up,  just  as  her  owner  is  about  to  cast  off  from  this  'arth, 
altogether." 

Joe  might  have  talked  for  an  hour :  he  did  chatter  away 
for  two  or  three  minutes,  with  his  head  and  half  his  body 
out  of  the  window,  uninterrupted  by  Mary,  who  sank  into 
a  chair,  to  prevent  falling  on  the  floor.  At  length  the  dear 
girl  commanded  herself,  and  spoke. 

"  You  cannot  possibly  be  certain,  Joe,"  she  said ;  "  that 
schooner  does  not  look,  to  me,  like  the  Sea  Lion." 

"  Nor  to  me,  in  some  things,  while  in  other  some  she 
does.  Her  upper  works  seem  strangely  out  of  shape,  and 
there's  precious  little  on  'em.  But  no  other  fore-taw-sail 
35 


408  THE     SEA     LIONS. 

schooner  ever  comes  in  this-a-way,  and  I  know  of  none 
likely  .to  do  it.  Ay,  by  Jupiter,  there  goes  the  very  blue 
peter  I  helped  to  make  with  my  own  hands,  and  it  was 
agreed  to  set  it,  as  the  deacon's  signal.  There 's  no  mis 
take,  now !" 

Joe  might  have  talked  half  an  hour  longer  without  any 
fear  of  interruption,  for  Mary  had  vanished  to  her  own 
room,  leaving  him  with  his  head  and  body  still  out  of  the 
window,  making  his  strictures  and  conjectures  for  some 
time  longer ;  while  the  person  to  whom  he  fancied  he  was 
speaking,  was,  in  truth,  on  her  knees,  rendering  thanks  to 
God  !  An  hour  later,  all  doubt  was  removed,  the  schooner 
coming  in  between  Oyster  Pond  and  Shelter  Island,  and 
making  the  best  of  her  way  to  the  well-known  wharf. 

"Isn't  it  wonderful,  Mary,"  exclaimed  the  deacon,  in  a 
hollow  voice,  it  is  true,  but  with  an  animation  and  force 
that  did  not  appear  to  have  any  immediate  connection  with 
death — "  isn't  it  wonderful  that  Gar'ner  should  come  back, 
after  all !  If  he  has  only  done  his  duty  by  me,  this  will 
be  the  greatest  ventur'  of  my  whole  life ;  it  will  make  the 
evening  of  my  days  comfortable.  I  hope  I've  always  been 
grateful  for  blessings,  and  I'm  sure  I'm  grateful,  from  the 
bottom  of  my  heart,  Tor  this.  Give  me  prosperity,  and  I'm 
not  apt  to  forget  it.  They've  been  asking  me  to  make  a 
will,  but  I  told  'em  I  was  too  poor  to  think  of  any  such 
thing  ;  and,  now  my  schooner  has  got  back,  I  s'pose  I  shall 
get  more  hints  of  the  same  sort.  Should  anything  happen 
to  me,  Mary,  you  can  bring  out  the  sealed  paper  I  gave 
you  to  keep,  and  that  must  satisfy  'em  all.  You'll  remem 
ber,  it  is  addressed  to  Gar'ner.  There  is  n't  much  in  it, 
and  it  won't  be  much  thought  of,  1  fancy ;  but,  such  as  it 
is,  'tis  the  last  instrument  I  sign,  unless  I  get  better.  To 
think  of  Gar'ner's  coming  back,  after  all !  It  has  put  new 
life  in  me,  and  I  shall  be  about,  ag'in,  in  a  week,  if  he  has 
only  not  forgotten  the  key,  and  the  hidden  treasure!" 

Mary  Pratt's  heart  had  not  been  so  light  for  many  a 
weary  day,  but  it  grieved  her  to  be  a  witness  of  this  linger 
ing  longing  after  the  things  of  the  world.  She  knew  that 
not  only  her  uncle's  days,  but  that  his  veiy  hours,  were 
numbered;  and  that,  notwithstanding  this  momentary 
flickering  of  the  lamp,  in  consequence  of  fresh  oil  being 


THE    SEA    LIONS.  409 

poured  into  it,  the  wick  was  nearly  consumed,  and  that  it 
must  shortly  go  out,  let  Roswell's  success  be  what  it  might. 
The  news  of  the  sudden  and  unlooked-for  return  of  a  vessel 
so  long  believed  to  be  lost,  spread  like  wildfire  over  the 
whole  point,  and  greatly  did  it  increase  the  interest  of  the 
relatives  in  the  condition  of  the  dying  man.  If  he  was  a 
subject  of  great  concern  before,  doubly  did  he  become  so 
now.  A  vessel  freighted  with  furs  would  have  caused 
much  excitement  of  itself;  but,  by  some  means  or  other, 
the  deacon's  great  secret  of  the  buried  treasure  had  leaked 
out,  most  probably  by  means  of  some  of  his  lamentations 
during  his  illness,  and,  though  but  imperfectly  known,  it 
added  largely  to  the  expectations  connected  with  the  un 
looked-for  return  of  the  schooner.  In  short,  it  would  not 
have  been  easy  to  devise  a  circumstance  that  should  serve 
to  increase  the  liveliness  of  feeling  that,  just  then,  prevailed 
on  the  subject  of  Deacon  Pratt  and  his  assets,  than  the 
arrival  of  the  Sea  Lion,  at  that  precise  moment. 

And  arrive  she  did,  that  tempest-tossed,  crippled,  ice 
bound,  and  half-burned  little  craft,  after  roaming  over  an 
extent  of  ocean  that  would  have  made  up  half  a  dozen  or 
dinary  sea  voyages.  It  was,  in  truth,  the  schooner  so  well 
known  to  the  reader,  that  was  now  settling  away  her  main 
sail  and  jib,  as  she  kept  off,  under  her  fore-topsail  alone, 
towards  the  wharf,  on  which  every  human  being  who  could, 
with  any  show  of  propriety,  be  there  at  such  a  moment, 
was  now  collected,  in  a  curious  and  excited  crowd.  Alto 
gether,  including  boys  and  females,  there  must  have  been 
not  less  than  a  hundred  persons  on  that  wharf;  and  among 
them  were  most  of  the  anxious  relatives  who  were  in  at 
tendance  on  the  vessel's  owner,  in  his  last  hours.  By  a 
transition  that  was  natural  enough,  perhaps,  under  the  cir 
cumstances,  they  had  transferred  their  interest  in  the  dea 
con  to  this  schooner,  which  they  looked  upon  as  an  inani 
mate  portion  of  an  investment  that  would  soon  have  little 
that  was  animate  about  it. 

Baiting  Joe  was  a  sort  of  oracle,  in  such  circumstances. 
He  had  passed  his  youth  at  sea,  having  often  doubled  the 
Horn,  and  was  known  to  possess  a  very  respectable  amount 
of  knowledge  on  the  subject  of  vessels  of  all  sorts  and  sizes, 
rig  and  qualities.  He  was  now  consulted  by  all  who  could 


±10  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

get  near  him,  as  a  matter  of  course,  and  his  opinions  were 
received  as  res  adjudicata,  as  the  lawyers  have  it. 

"  That 's  the  boat,"  said  Joe,  affecting  to  call  the  Sea 
Lion  by  a  diminutive,  as  a  proof  of  regard;  "yes,  that's 
the  craft,  herself;  but  she  is  wonderfully  deep  in  the  water ! 
I  never  seed  a  schooner  of  her  tonnage,  come  in  from  a 
v'y'ge,  with  her  scuppers  so  near  awash.  Don't  you  think, 
Jim,  there  must  be  suthin'  heavier  than  skins,  in  her  hold, 
to  bring  her  down  so  low  in  the  water?" 

Jim  was  another  loafer,  who  lived  by  taking  clams,  oys 
ters,  fish,  and  the  other  treasures  of  the  surrounding  bays. 
He  was  by  no  means  as  high  authority  as  Baiting  Joe ; 
still  he  was  always  authority  on  a  wharf. 

"I  never  seed  the  like  on't,"  answered  Jim.  "That 
schooner  must  ha'  made  most  of  her  passage  under  water. 
She 's  as  deep  as  one  of  our  coasters  comin'  in  with  a  load 
o'  brick !" 

"  She 's  deep ;  but  not  as  deep  as  a  craft  I  once  made  a 
cruise  in.  I  was  aboard  of  the  first  of  Uncle  Sam's  gun 
boats,  that  crossed  the  pond  to  Gibraltar.  When  we  got 
in,  it  made  the  Mediterranean  stare,  I  can  tell  you  !  We 
had  furrin  officers  aboard  us,  the  whull  time,  lookin'  about, 
and  wonderin',  as  they  called  it,  if  we  wasn't  amphibbies." 

"What 's  that  ?"  demanded  Jim,  rather  hastily.  "  There 's 
no  sich  rope  in  the  ship." 

"  I  know  that  well  enough ;  but  an  amphibby,  as  I  un 
derstand  it,  is  a  new  sort  of  whale,  that  comes  up  to  breathe, 
like  all  of  that  family,  as  old  Dr.  Mitchell,  of  Cow  Neck, 
calls  the  critturs.  So  the  furrin  officers  thought  we  must 
be  of  the  amphibby  family,  to  live  so  much  under  water, 
as  it  seemed  to  them.  It  was  wet  work,  I  can  tell  you, 
boys ;  I  don't  think  I  got  a  good  breath  more  than  once  an 
hour,  the  whull  of  the  first  day  we  was  out.  One  of  the 
furrin  officers  asked  our  captain  how  the  gun-boat  steered. 
He  wasn't  a  captain,  at  all — only  a  master,  you  see,  and 
we  all  called  him  Jumpin'  Billy.  So  Jumpin'  Billy  says, 
'  Don't  know,  sir.'  '  What !  crossed  the  Atlantic  in  her, 
and  don't  know  how  your  craft  steers !'  says  the  furrin  offi 
cer,  says  he — and  well  he  might,  Jim,  since  nothin'  that 
ever  lived  could  go  from  Norfolk  to  Gibraltar,  without 
some  attention  to 


go  trom  iMorioiK  to  loriDraitar,  witnout 
the  helm — but  Jumpin'  Billy  had  another 


THE    SEA    LIONS.  411 

story  to  tell.  *  No,  sir;  don't  know/  he  answered.  'You 
see,  sir,  a  nor-wester  took  us  right  aft,  as  we  cleared  the 
capes,  and  down  she  dove,  with  her  nose  under  and  her 
starn  out,  and  she  come  across  without  having  a  chance  to 
try  the  rudder.' " 

This  story,  which  Joe  had  told  at  least  a  hundred  times 
before,  and  which,  by  the  way,  is  said  to  be  true,  produced 
the  usual  admiration,  especially  among  the  crowd  of  lega 
tees-expectant,  to  most  of  whom  it  was  quite  new.  When 
the  laugh  went  out,  which  it  soon  did  of  itself,  Joe  pursued 
a  subject  that  was  of  more  interest  to  most  of  his  auditors, 
or  rather  to  the  principal  personages  among  them. 

"  Skins  never  brought  a  craft  so  low,  that  you  may  be 
sartain  of!"  he  resumed.  "I've  seed  all  sorts  of  vessels 
stowed,  but  a  hundred  press-screws  couldn't  cram  in  furs 
enough  to  bring  a  craft  so  low!  To  my  eye,  Jim,  there's 
suthin'  unnat'ral  about  that  schooner,  a'ter  all." 

The  study  is  scarce  worthy  of  a  diploma,  but  we  will 
take  this  occasion  to  say,  for  the  benefit  of  certain  foreign 
writers,  principally  of  the  female  sex,  who  fancy  they  repre 
sent  Americanisms,  that  the  vulgar  of  the  great  republic, 
and  it  is  admitted  there  are  enough  of  the  class,  never  say 
"summat"  or  "  somethink,"  which  are  low  English,  but 
not  low  American,  dialect.  The  in-and-in  Yankee  says 
"  suth-in."  In  a  hundred  other  words  have  these  ambi 
tious  ladies  done  injustice  to  our  vulgar,  who  are  not  vul 
gar,  according  to  the  laws  of  Cockayne,  in  the  smallest 
degree.  "  The  Broadway,"  for  instance,  is  no  more  used 
by  an  American  than  "the  Congress,"  or  "the  United 
States  of  North  America." 

"  Perhaps,"  answered  Jim,  "  'tisn't  the  Sea  Lion,  a'ter 
all.  There's  a  family  look  about  all  the  craft  some  men 
build,  and  this  may  be  a  sort  of  relation  of  our  missin* 
schooner." 

"  I  '11  not  answer  for  the  craft,  though  that 's  her  blue 
peter,  and  them 's  her  mast-heads,  and  I  turned  in  that 
taw-sail  halyard-block  with  my  own  hands. — I  '11  tell  you 
what,  Jim,  there's  been  a  wrack,  or  a  nip,  up  yonder, 
among  the  ice,  and  this  schooner  has  been  built  anew  out 
of  that  there  schooner  You  see  if  it  don't  turn  out  as  I 
35* 


412  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

tell  you.  Ay,  and  there 's  Captain  Gar'ner,  himself,  alive 
and  well,  just  comin'  forrard." 

A  little  girl  started  with  this  news,  and  was  soon  pour 
ing  it  into  the  willing  ears  and  open  heart  of  the  weeping 
and  grateful  Mary.  An  hour  later,  lloswell  held  the  latter  in 
his  arms ;  for  at  such  a  moment,  it  was  not  possible  for  the 
most  scrupulous  of  the  sex  to  affect  coldness  and  reserve, 
where  there  was  so  much  real  tenderness  and  love.  While 
folding  Mary  to  his  heart,  Roswell  whispered  in  her  ears 
the  blessed  words  that  announced  his  own  humble  submis 
sion  to  the  faith  which  accepted  Christ  as  the  Son  of  God. 
Too  well  did  the  gentle  and  ingenuous  girl  understand  the 
sincerity  and  frankness  of  her  lovers  nature,  to  doubt  what 
he  said,  or  in  any  manner  to  distrust  the  motive.  That 
moment  was  the  happiest  of  her  short  and  innocent  life ! 

But  the  welcome  tidings  had  reached  the  deacon,  and 
ere  Roswell  had  an  opportunity  of  making  any  other  ex 
planations  but  those  which  assured  Mary  that  he  had  come 
back  all  that  she  wished  him  to  be,  both  of  them  were 
summoned  to  the  bed-side  of  the  dying  man.  The  effect 
of  the  excitement  on  the  deacon  was  so  very  great  as  al 
most  to  persuade  the  expectant  legatees  that  their  visit 
was  premature,  and  that  they  might  return  home,  to  re 
new  it  at  some  future  day.  It  is  painful  to  find  it  our 
duty  to  draw  sketches  that  shall  contain  such  pictures  of 
human  nature;  but  with  what  justice  could  we  represent 
the  loathsome  likeness  of  covetousness,  hovering  over  a 
grave,  and  omit  the  resemblances  of  those  who  surrounded 
it?  Mary  Pratt,  'alone,  of  all  that  extensive  family  con 
nection,  felt  and  thought  as  Christianity,  and  womanly 
affection,  and  reason,  dictated.  All  the  rest  saw  nothing 
but  the  possessor  of  a  considerable  property,  who  was 
about  to  depart  for  that  unknown  world,  into  which  nothing 
could  be  taken  from  this,  but  the  divine  and  abused  spirit 
which  had  been  fashioned  in  the  likeness  of  God. 

"  Welcome,  Gar'ner — welcome  home,  ag'in  !"  exclaimed 
the  deacon,  so  heartily  as  quite  to  deceive  the  young  man 
as  to  the  real  condition  of  his  owner;  a  mistake  that  was, 
perhaps,  a  little  unfortunate,  as  it  induced  him  to  be  more 
frank  than  might  otherwise  have  been  the  case.  "  I 
couldn't  find  it  in  my  heart  to  give  you  up,  and  have,  ali 


THE     SEA     LIONS.  413 

along,  believed  that  we  should  yet  have  good  news  from 
you.  The  Gar'ners  are  a  reliable  family,  and  that  was  one 
reason  why  I  chose  you  to  command  my  schooner.  Them 
Daggetts  are  a  torment,  but  we  never  should  have  known 
anything  about  the  islands,  or  the  key,  hadn't  it  been  for 
one  on  'em !" 

As  the  deacon  stopped  to  breathe,  Mary  turned  away 
from  the  bed,  grieved  at  heart  to  see  the  longings  of  the 
world  thus  clinging  to  the  spirit  of  one  who  probably  had 
not  another  hour  to  live.  The  glazed  but  animated  eye, 
a  cheek  which  resembled  a  faded  leaf  of  the  maple  laid  on 
a  cold  and  whitish  stone,  and  lips  that  had  already  begun 
to  recede  from  the  teeth,  made  a  sad,  sad  picture,  truly, 
to  look  upon  at  such  a  moment;  yet,  of  ail  present,  Mary 
Pratt  alone  felt  the  fullness  of  the  incongruity,  and  alone 
bethought  her  of  the  unreasonableness  of  encouraging  feel 
ings  like  those  which  were  now  uppermost  in  the  deacon^s 
breast.  Even  minister  Whittle  had  a  curiosity  to  know 
how  much  was  added  to  the  sum-total  of  Deacon  Pratt's 
assets,  by  the  return  of  a  craft  that  had  so  long  been  set 
down  among  the  missing.  When  all  eyes,  therefore,  were 
turned  in  curiosity  on  the  handsome  face  of  the  fine  manly 
youth  who  now  stood  at  the  bed-side  of  the  deacon,  includ 
ing  those  of  brother  and  sister,  of  nephews  and  nieces,  of 
cousins  and  friends,  those  of  this  servant  of  the  most  high 
God  was  of  the  number,  and  not  the  least  expressive  of 
solicitude  and  expectation.  As  soon  as  the  deacon  had 
caught  a  little  breath,  and  had  swallowed  a  restorative  that 
the  hired  nurse  had  handed  to  him,  his  eager  thoughts  re 
verted  to  the  one  engrossing  theme  of  his  whole  life. 

"  These  are  all  friends,  Gar'ner,"  he  said ;  "  come  to 
visit  me  in  a  little  sickness  that  I've  been  somewhat  sub 
ject  to,  of  late,  and  who  will  all  be  glad  to  hear  of  our 
good  fortune.  So  you've  brought  the  schooner  back,  a'ter 
all,  Gar'ner,  and  will  disapp'int  the  Sag  Harbour  ship 
owners,  who  have  been  all  along  foretelling  that  we  should 
never  see  her  ag'in  : — brought  her  back — ha!  Gar'ner?" 

t(  Only  in  part,  Deacon  Pratt.  We  have  had  good  luck 
and'  bad  luck  since  we  left  you,  and  have  only  brought 
home  the  best  part  of  the  craft." 

"  The  best  part — "  said  the  deacon,  gulping  his  words, 


414  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

in  a  way  that  compelled  him  to  pause;  "The  best  part! 
What,  in  the  name  of  property,  has  become  of  the  rest?" 

"  The  rest  was  burned,  sir,  to  keep  us  from  freezing  tc 
death."  Roswell  then  gave  a  brief  but  very  clear  and  in* 
telligible  account  of  what  had  happened,  and  of  the  manner 
in  which  he  had  caused  the  hulk  of  the  deacon's  Sea  Lion 
to  be  raised  upon  by  the  materials  furnished  by  the  Sea 
Lion  of  the  Vineyard.  The  narrative  brought  Mary  Pratt 
back  to  the  side  of  the  bed,  and  caused  her  calm  eyes  to 
become  riveted  intently  on  the  speaker's  face.  As  for  the 
deacon,  he  might  have  said,  with  Shakspeare's  Wolsey, 

"Had  I  but  served  my  God  with  half  the  zeal 
I  served  my  king,  he  would  not,  in  mine  age, 
Have  left  me  naked  to  mine  enemies." 

His  fall  was  not  that  of  a  loss  of  power,  it  is  true,  but  it 
was  that  of  a  still  more  ignoble  passion,  covetousness.  As 
Roswell  proceeded,  his  mind  represented  one  source  of 
wealth  after  another  released  from  his  clutch,  until  it  was 
with  a  tremulous  voice,  and  a  countenance  from  which  all 
traces  of  animation  had  fled,  that  he  ventured  again  to 
speak. 

"Then  I  may  look  upon  my  ventur'  as  worse  than 
nothing?"  he  said.  "The  insurers  will  raise  a  question 
about  paying  for  a  craft  that  has  been  rebuilt  in  this  way, 
and  the  Vineyard  folks  will  be  sartain  to  put  in  a  claim  of 
salvage,  both  on  account  of  two  of  their  hands  helping  you 
with  the  work,  and  on  account  of  the  materials  — -  and  we 
with  no  cargo,  as  an  offset  to  it  all  1" 

"  No,  deacon,  it  is  not  quite  as  bad  as  that,"  resumed 
Roswell.  "We  have  brought  home  a  good  lot  of  skins; 
enough  to  pay  the  people  full  wages  and  to  return  you 
every  cent  of  outfit,  with  a  handsome  advance  on  the  ven 
ture.  A  sealer  usually  makes  a  good  business  of  it,  if  she 
falls  in  with  seals.  Our  cargo,  in  skins,  can't  be  worth 
Jess  than  $20,000 ;  besides  half  a  freight  left  on  the  island, 
for  which  another  craft  may  be  sent." 

"That  is  suthin',  the  Lord  be  praised!"  ejaculated  the 
deacon.  "  Though  the  schooner  is  as  bad  as  gone,  and 
the  outlays  have  been  awfully  heavy,  I  'm  almost  afraid  to 
go  any  further.  Gar'ner,  —  did  you-- 1  grow  weak  very 


THE    SEA    LIONS.  415 

fast  —  did  you  stop  —  Mary,  I  wish  you  would  put  the 
question." 

"I  am  afraid  that  my  uncle  means  to  ask  if  you  stopped 
at  the  Key,  in  the  West  Indies,  according  to  your  instruc 
tions,  Roswell?"  the  niece  said,  and  most  reluctantly,  for 
she  plainly  saw  it  was  fully  time  her  uncle  ceased  to  think 
of  the  things  of  this  life,  and  to  begin  to  turn  all  his 
thoughts  on  the  blessed  mediation,  and  another  state  of 
being. 

"  I  forgot  no  part  of  your  orders,  sir,"  rejoined  Roswell. 
"  It  was  my  duty  to  obey  them,  and  I  believe  I  have  done 
so  to  the  letter — " 

"Stop,  Gar'ner,"  interrupted  the  dying  man  —  "one 
question,  while  I  think  of  it.  Will  the  Vineyard  men  have 
any  claim  of  salvage  on  account  of  them  skins?" 

"  Certainly  not,  sir.  These  skins  are  all  our  own — were 
taken,  cured,  stowed,  and  brought  home  altogether  by  our 
selves.  There  is  a  lot  of  skins  belonging  to  the  Vine- 
yarders,  stowed  away  in  the  house,  which  is  yours,  deacon, 
and  which  it  would  well  pay  any  small  craft  to  go  and 
bring  away.  If  anybody  is  to  claim  salvage,  it  will  be 
ourselves.  No  salvage  was  demanded  for  the  loss  off  Cape 
Henlopen,  I  trust?" 

"  No,  none — Daggett  behaved  what  I  call  liberal  in  that 
affair," — half  the  critics  of  the  day  would  use  the  adjective 
instead  of  the  adverb  here,  and  why  should  Deacon  Pratt' s 
English  be  any  better  than  his  neighbours? — "  and  so  I've 
admitted  to  his  friends  over  on  the  Vineyard.  But,  Gar'ner, 
our  great  affair  still  remains  to  be  accounted  for.  Do  you 
wish  to  have  the  room  cleared  before  you  speak  of  that  — 
shall  we  turn  the  key  on  all  these  folks,  and  then  settle 
accounts — he  !  he  !  he !" 

The  deacon's  facetiousness  sounded  strangely  out  of 
place  to  Roswell;  still,  he  did  not  exactly  know  how  to 
gainsay  his  wishes.  There  might  be  an  indiscretion  in 
pursuing  his  narrative  before  so  many  witnesses,  and  the 
young  man  paused  until  the  room  was  cleared,  leaving  no 
one  in  it  but  the  sick  man,  Mary,  himself,  and  the  nurse. 
The  last  could  not  well  be  gotten  rid  of  on  Oyster  Pond, 
where  her  office  gave  her  an  assumed  right  to  know  all 
family  secrets;  or,  what  was  the  same  thing  to  her,  to 


416  THE     SEA    LIONS. 

fancy  that  she  knew  them.  Among  all  the  sayings  which 
the  experience  of  mankind  has  reduced  to  axioms,  there  is 
not  one  more  just  than  that  which  says,  "  There  are  secrets 
in  all  families."  These  secrets  the  world  commonly  affects 
to  know  all  about,  but  we  think  few  will  have  reached  the 
age  of  threescore  without  becoming  convinced  of  how 
much  pretending  ignorance  there  is  in  this  assumption  of 
the  world.  "  Tot  ou  tard  tout  se  scait,"  is  a  significant 
saying  of  our  old  friends,  the  French,  who  know  as  much 
of  things  in  practice  as  any  other  people  on  the  face  of  the 
earth  ;  but  "  tot  ou  tard  tout  ne  sc  scait  pas." 

"Is  the  door  shut?"  asked  the  deacon,  tremulously,  for 
eagerness,  united  to  debility,  was  sadly  shaking  his  whole 
frame.  "  See  that  the  door  is  shut  tight,  Mary;  this  is  our 
own  secret,  and  nurse  must  remember  that." 

Mary  assured  him  that  they  were  alone,  and  turned  awa) 
in  sorrow  from  the  bed. 

"  Now,  Gar'ner,"  resumed  the  deacon,  "  open  your  whole 
heart,  and  let  us  know  all  about  it." 

Roswell  hesitated  to  reply  ;  for  he,  too,  was  shocked  at 
witnessing  this  instance  of  a  soul's  clinging  to  mammon, 
when  on  the  very  eve  of  departing  for  the  unknown  world. 
There  was  a  look  in  the  glazed  and  sunken  eyes  of  the  old 
man,  that  reminded  him  unpleasantly  of  that  snapping  of 
the  eyes  which  he  had  so  often  seen  in  Daggett. 

"  You  did  n't  forget  the  key,  surely,  Gar'ner  ?"  asked  the 
deacon,  anxiously. 

"  No,  sir;  we  did  our  whole  duty  by  that  part  of  the 
voyage." 

"  Did  you  find  it — was  the  place  accurately  described  ?" 

"  No  chart  could  have  made  it  better.  We  lost  a  month 
in  looking  for  the  principal  land-mark,  which  had  been 
altered  by  the  weather ;  but,  that  once  found,  the  rest  was 
easy.  The  difficulty  we  met  with  in  starting,  has  brought 
us  home  so  late  in  the  spring." 

"  Never  mind  the  spring,  Gar'ner;  the  part  that  is  past 
is  sartain  to  come  round  ag'in,  in  due  time.  And  so  you 
found  the  very  key  that  was  described  by  Daggett?" 

"  We  did,  sir;  and  just  where  he  described  it  to  be." 

"  And  how  about  the  tree,  and  the  little  hillock  of  sand, 
at  its  foot?" 


THE    SEA     LIONS.  417 

"Both  wers  there,  deacon.  The  hillock  must  have 
grown  a  good  deal,  by  reason  of  the  shifting  sand ;  but,  all 
things  considered,  the  place  was  well  enough  described." 

"  YVell  —  well  —  well  —  you  opened  the  hillock,  of 
course  ?" 

"  We  did,  sir ;  and  found  the  box  mentioned  by  the 
pirate." 

"  A  good  large  box,  I  Ml  warrant  ye !  Them  pirates 
seldom  do  things  by  halves — he  !  he  !  he  !" 

"I  can't  say  much  for  the  size  of  the  box,  deacon  —  it 
looked  to  me  as  if  it  had  once  held  window-glass,  and  that 
of  rather  small  dimensions." 

"  But,  the  contents — you  do  not  mention  the  contents." 

"  Th;;y  are  here,  sir,"  taking  a  small  bag  from  his  pocket, 
and  laying  it  on  the  bed,  by  the  deacon's  side.  "The 
pieces  are  all  of  gold,  and  there  are  just  one  hundred  and 
forty-three  of  them.  —  Heavy  doubloons,  it  is  true,  and  1 
dare  say  well  worth  their  16  dollars  each." 

The  deacon  gave  a  gulp,  as  if  gasping  for  breath,  at  the 
same  time  that  he  clutched  the  bag.  The  next  instant  he 
was  dead ;  and  there  is  much  reason  to  believe  that  the 
demons  who  had  watched  him,  arid  encouraged  him  in  his 
besetting  sin,  laughed  at  this  consummation  of  their  malig 
nant  arts!  If  angels  in  heaven  did  not  mourn  at  this  cha 
racteristic  departure  of  a  frail  spirit  from  its  earthly  tene 
ment,  one  who  had  many  of  their  qualities  did.  Heavy 
had  been  the  load  on  Mary  Pratt's  heart,  at  the  previous 
display  of  her  uncle's  weakness,  and  profound  was  now  her 
grief  at  his  having  made  such  an  end. 


418  THE     SEA    LIONS. 


CHAPTER  XXX. 

4  Cit.  We  '11  hear  the  will :  Read  it,  Mark  Antony. 
Cit.  The  will,  the  will ;  we  will  hear  Cgesar's  will. 
Ant.  Have  patience,  gentle  friends,  I  must  not  read  it ; 
It  is  not  meet  you  know  how  Caesar  loved  you. 

Julius  Caesar. 

THERE  is  usually  great  haste,  in  this  country,  in  getting 
rid  of  the  dead.  In  no  other  part  of  the  world,  with 
which  we  are  acquainted,  are  funerals  so  simple,  or  so 
touching;  placing  the  judgment  and  sins  which  lead  to  it, 
in  a  far  more  conspicuous  light  than  rank,  or  riches,  or 
personal  merits.  Scarfs  and  gloves  are  given  in  town,  and 
gloves  in  the  country,  though  scarfs  are  rare ;  but,  beyond 
these,  and  the  pall,  and  the  hearse,  and  the  weeping  friends, 
an  American  funeral  is  a  very  unpretending  procession  of 
persons  in  their  best  attire ;  on  foot,  when  the  distance  is 
short;  in  carriages,  in  wagons,  and  on  horseback,  when 
the  grave  is  far  from  the  dwelling.  There  is,  however, 
one  feature  connected  with  a  death  in  this  country,  that 
we  could  gladly  see  altered.  It  is  the  almost  indecent 
haste,  which  so  generally  prevails,  to  get  rid  of  the  dead 
Doubtless  the  climate  has  had  an  effect  in  establishing  this 
custom ;  but  the  climate,  by  no  means,  exacts  the  pre 
cipitancy  that  is  usually  practised. 

As  there  were  so  many  friends  from  a  distance  present, 
some  of  whom  took  the  control  of  affairs,  Mary  shrinking 
back  into  herself,  with  a  timidity  natural  to  her  sex  and 
years,  the  moment  her  care  could  no  longer  serve  her 
uncle,  the  funeral  of  the  deacon  took  place  the  day  after 
that  of  his  death.  It  was  the  solemn  and  simple  ceremony 
of  the  country.  The  Rev.  Mr.  Whittle  conceived  that  he 
ought  to  preach  a  sermon  on  the  occasion  of  the  extin 
guishment  of  this  "  bright  and  shining  light,"  and  the  body 
was  carried  to  the  meeting-house,  where  the  whole  congre 
gation  assembled,  it  being  the  Sabbath.  We  cannot  say 
much  for  the  discourse,  which  had  already  served  as  eulo- 
giums  on  two  or  three  other  deacons,  with  a  simple  subsit- 


THE    SEA    LIONS.  419 

tution  of  names.  In  few  things  are  the  credulous  more 
imposed  on  than  in  this  article  of  sermons.  A  clergyman 
shall  preach  the  workings  of  other  men's  brains  for  years, 
and  not  one  of  his  hearers  detect  the  imposition,  purely  on 
account  of  the  confiding  credit  it  is  customary  to  yield  to 
the  pulpit.  In  this  respect,  preaching  is  very  much  like  re 
viewing, — the  listener,  or  the  reader,  being  too  complaisant 
to  see  through  the  great  standing  mystifications  of  either. 
Yet  preaching  is  a  work  of  high  importance  to  men,  and 
one  that  doubtless  accomplishes  great  good,  more  espe 
cially  when  the  life  of  the  preacher  corresponds  with  his 
doctrine ;  and  even  reviewing,  though  infinitely  of  less 
moment,  might  be  made  a  very  useful  art,  in  the  hands  of 
upright,  independent,  intelligent,  and  learned  men.  But 
nothing  in  this  world  is  as  it  should  be,  and  centuries  will 
probably  roll  over  it  ere  the  "  good  time"  shall  really 
come! 

The  day  of  the  funeral  being  the  Sabbath,  nothing  that 
touched  on  business  was  referred  to.  On  the  following 
morning,  however,  "  the  friends"  assembled  early  in  the 
parlour,  and  an  excuse  for  being  a  little  pressing  was 
made,  on  the  ground  that  so  many  present  had  so  far  to 
go.  The  deacon  had  probably  made  a  remove  much  more 
distant  than  any  that  awaited  his  relatives. 

"  It  is  right  to  look  a  little  into  the  deacon's  matters 
before  we  separate,"  said  Mr.  Job  Pratt,  who,  if  he  had  the 
name,  had  not  the  patience  of  him  of  old,  "  in  order  to 
save  trouble  and  hard  feelings.  Among  relatives  and 
friends  there  should  be  nothing  but  confidence  and  affec 
tion,  and  I  am  sure  I  have  no  other  sentiments  toward  any 
here.  I  suppose" — all  Mr.  Job  Pratt  knew,  was  ever  on  a 
supposition — "  I  suppose  I  am  (he  proper  person  to  ad 
minister  to  the  deacon's  property,  though  I  don't  wish  to 
do  it,  if  there 's  the  least  objection." 

Every  one  assented  that  he  was  the  most  proper  person, 
for  all  knew  he  was  the  individual  the  surrogate  would  be 
the  most  likely  to  appoint. 

"  I  have  never  set  down  the  deacon's  property  as  any 
thing  like  what  common  report  makes  it,"  resumed  Mr. 
Job  Pratt ;  "  though  I  do  suppose  it  will  fully  reach  ten 
thousand  dollars." 
36 


420  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

"La!"  exclaimed  a  female  cousin,  and  a  widow,  who 
had  expectations  of  her  own,  "  1  'd  always  thought  Deacon 
Pratt  worth  forty  or  fifty  thousand  dollars!  Ten  thousand 
dollars  won't  make  much  for  each  of  us,  divided  up  among 
so  many  folks !" 

"The  division  will  not  be  so  very  great,  Mrs.  Martin," 
returned  Mr.  Job,  "  as  it  will  be  confined  to  the  next  of 
kin  and  their  representatives.  Unless  a  will  should  be 
found  —  and,  by  all  I  can  learn,  there  is  none"  —  empha 
sizing  the  last  word  with  point  —  "  unless  a  will  be  found 
the  whole  estate,  real  and  personal,  must  be  divided  into 
just  five  shares;  which,  accordin'  to  my  calculation,  would 
make  about  two  thousand  dollars  a  share.  No  great  fortin, 
to  be  sure ;  though  a  comfortable  addition  to  small  means. 
The  deacon  was  cluss  (Anglice,  close) ;  yes,  he  was  cluss — 
all  the  Pratts  are  a  little  given  to  be  cluss;  but  I  don't 
know  that  they  are  any  the  worse  for  it.  It  is  well  to  be 
curful  (careful)  of  one's  means,  which  are  a  trust  given  to 
us  by  Divine  Providence." 

In  this  manner  did  Mr.  Job  Pratt  often  quiet  his  con 
science  for  being  as  "  curful"  of  his  own  as  of  other  per 
son's  assets.  Divine  Providence,  according  to  his  morality, 
made  it  as  much  a  duty  to  transfer  the  dollar  that  was  in 
his  neighbour's  pocket  to  his  own.  as  to  watch  it  vigilantly 
after  the  transposition  has  been  effected. 

"A  body  should  be  curful,  as  you  say,  sir,"  returned 
the  Widow  Martin ;  "  and  for  that  reason  I  should  like  to 
know  if  there  isn't  a  will.  I  know  the  deacon  set  store  by 
me,  and  I  can  hardly  think  he  has  departed  for  another 
world  without  bethinking  him  of  his  cousin  Jenny,  and  of 
her  widowhood." 

"I'm  afraid  he  has,  Mrs.  Martin  —  really  afraid  he  has. 
I  can  hear  of  no  will.  The  doctor  says  he  doubts  if  the 
deacon  could  ever  muster  courage  to  write  anything  about 
his  own  death,  and  that  he  has  never  heard  of  any  will. 
I  understand  Mary,  that  she  has  no  knowledge  of  any  will ; 
and  I  do  not  know  where  else  to  turn,  in  order  to  inquire. 
Rev.  Mr.  Whittle  thinks  there  is  a  will,  I  ought  to  say." 

"  There  must  be  a  will,"  returned  the  pa-rson,  who  was 
on  the  ground  again  early,  and  on  this  very  errand ;  "I 
feel  certain  ^of  that  from  the  many  conversations  I  have 


THE     SEA     LIONS.  421 

held  with  the  deceased.  It  is  not  a  month  since  I  spoke  to 
him  of  divers  repairs  that  were  necessary  to  each  and  all 
of  the  parish  buildings,  including  the  parsonage.  He  agreed 
to  every  word  I  said  —  admitted  that  we  could  not  get  on 
another  winter  without  a  new  horse-shed  ;  and  that  the  east 
end  of  the  parsonage  ought  to  be  shingled  this  coming 
summer." 

"All  of  which  may  be  very  true,  parson,  without  the 
deacon's  making  a  will,"  quietly,  and  we  may  now  add 
patiently,  observed  Mr.  Job. 

"  I  don't  think  so,"  returned  the  minister,  with  a  warmth 
that  might  have  been  deemed  indiscreet,  did  it  not  relate 
to  the  horse-shed,  the  parsonage,  and  the  meeting-house, 
all  of  which  were  public  property,  rather  than  to  anything 
in  which  he  had  a  more  direct  legal  interest.  '*  A  pious 
member  of  the  church  would  hardly  hold  out  the  hopes  that 
Deacon  Pratt  has  held  out  to  me,  for  more  than  two  years 
without  meaning  to  make  his  words  good  in  the  end.  ] 
think  all  will  agree  with  me  in  that  opinion." 

"  Did  the  deacon,  then,  go  so  far  as  to  promise  to  do  any 
thing?"  asked  Mr.  Job,  a  little  timidly;  for  he  was  by  no 
means  sure  the  answer  might  not  be  in  the  affirmative,  in 
which  case  he  anticipated  the  worst. 

"  Perhaps  not,"  answered  Minister  Whittle,  too  con 
scientious  to  tell  a  downright  lie,  though  sorely  tempted  so 
to  do.  "  But  a  man  may  promise  indirectly,  as  well  as 
directly.  When  I  have  a  thing  much  at  heart,  and  con 
verse  often  about  it  with  a  person  who  can  grant  all  I  wish, 
and  that  person  listens  as  attentively  as  I  could  wish  him 
to  do,  I  regard  that  as  a  promise ;  and,  in  church  matters, 
one  of  a  very  solemn  nature."  •  ,; -: 

All  the  Jesuits  in  the  world  do  not  get  their  educations 
at  Rome,  or  acknowledge  Ignatius  Loyola  as  the  great 
founder  of  their  order.  Some  are  to  be  found  who  have 
never  made  a  public  profession  of  their  faith  and  zeal,  have 
never  assumed  the  tonsure,  or  taken  the  vows. 

"  That's  as  folks  think,"  quietly  returned  Mr.  Job  Pratt, 
though  he  smiled  in  a  manner  so  significant  as  to  cause 
Mrs.  Martin  a  new  qualm,  as  she  grew  more  and  more  ap 
prehensive  that  the  property  was,  after  all,  to  go  by  the 
VOL.  II.  — 18 


-  THE     SEA    LIONS. 

distribution  law.  "  Some  folks  think  a  promise  ought  to 
be  expressed,  while  others  think  it  may  be  understood. 
The  law,  I  believe,  commonly  looks  for  the  direct  expres 
sion  of  any  binding  promise;  and,  in  matters  of  this  sort, 
one  made  in  writing,  too,  and  that  under  a  seal,  and  before 
three  responsible  witnesses." 

"  I  wish  a  full  inquiry  might  be  made,  to  ascertain  if 
there  be  no  will ;"  put  in  the  minister,  anxiously. 

"  I  'm  quite  willing  so  to  do,"  returned  Mr.  Job,  whose 
confidence  and  moral  courage  increased  each  instant. 
"Quite  willing;  and  am  rather  anxious  for  it,  if  I  could 
only  see  where  to  go  to  inquire." 

"  Does  no  one  present  know  of  any  will  made  by  the  de 
ceased?"  demanded  Minister  Whittle,  authoritatively. 

A  dead  silence  succeeded  to  the  question.  Eye  met  eye, 
and  there  was  great- disappointment  among  the  numerous 
collaterals  present,  including  all  those  who  did  not  come  in 
as  next  of  kin,  or  as  their  direct  representatives.  But  the 
Rev.  Mr.  Whittle  had  been  too  long  and  too  keenly  on  the 
scent  of  a  legacy,  to  be  thrown  out  of  the  hunt,  just  as  he 
believed  the  game  was  coming  in  sight. 

"  It  might  be  well  to  question  each  near  relative  direct 
ly,"  he  added.  "  Mr.  Job  Pratt,  do  you  know  nothing  of 
any  will?" 

"  Nothing  whatever.  At  one  time  I  did  think  the  dea 
con  meant  to  make  his  testament ;  but  I  conclude  that  he 
must  have  changed  his  mind." 

"And  you,  Mrs.  Thomas,"  turning  to  the  sister  —  "as 
next  of  kin,  I  make  the  same  inquiry  of  you !" 

"  I  once  talked  with  brother  about  it,"  answered  this  re 
lative,  who  was  working  away  in  a  rocking-chair  as  if  she 
thought  the  earth  might  stop  in  its  orbit,  if  she  herself 
ceased  to  keep  in  motion ;  "  but  he  gave  me  no  satisfactory 
answer  —  that  is,  nothin'  that  I  call  satisfactory.  Had  he 
told  me  he  had  made  a  will,  and  given  me  a  full  shear, 
(share),  I  should  have  been  content;  or,  had  he  told  me 
that  he  had  not  made  a  will,  and  that  the  law  would  give 
me  a  full  shear,  I  should  have  been  content.  I  look  upon 
myself  as  a  person  easily  satisfied." 

This  was  being  explicit,  and  left  little  more  to  be  obtain 
ed  from  the  deacon's  beloved  and  only  surviving  sister. 


THE    SEA     LIONS.  423 

"And  you,  Mary ;  do  you  know  anything  of  a  will  made 
by  your  uncle?" 

Mary  shook  her  head ;  but  there  was  no  smile  on  her 
features,  for  the  scene  was  unpleasant  to  her. 

"  Then  no  one  present  knows  of  any  paper  that  the  dea 
con  left  specially  to  be  opened  after  his  death?"  demanded 
Rev.  Mr.  Whittle,  putting  the  general  question  pretty  much 
at  random. 

"A  paper  !"  cried  Mary,  hastily.  "  Yes,  I  know  some 
thing  of  a  paper — I  thought  you  spoke  of  a  will." 

"A  will  is  commonly  written  on  paper,  now-a-days,  Miss 
Mary — but,  you  have  a  paper?" 

11  Uncle  gave  me  a  paper,  and  told  me  to  keep  till  Ros- 
well  Gardiner  came  back;  and,  if  he  himself  should  not 
then  be  living,  to  give  it  to  him" — The  colour  now  mount 
ed  to  the  very  temples  of  the  pretty  girl,  and  she  seemed  to 
speak  with  greater  deliberation  and  care.  "  As  I  was  to 
give  the  paper  to  Roswell,  I  have  always  thought  it  related 
to  him.  My  uncle  spoke  of  it  to  me  as  lately  as  the  day 
of  his  death." 

"That's  the  will,  beyond  a  doubt!"  cried  Rev.  Mr. 
Whittle,  with  more  exultation  than  became  his  profession 
and  professions  —  "  Do  you  not  think  this  may  be  Deacon 
Pratt's  will,  Miss  Mary?" 

Now  Mary  had  never  thought  any  such  thing.  She  knew 
that  her  uncle  much  wished  her  to  marry  Roswell,  and  had 
all  along  fancied  that  the  paper  she  held,  which  indeed  was 
contained  in  an  envelop  addressed  to  her  lover,  contained 
some  expression  of  his  wishes  on  this  to  her  the  most  in 
teresting  of  all  subjects,  and  nothing  else.  Mary  Pratt 
thought  very  little  of  her  uncle's  property,  and  still  less  of 
its  future  disposition,  while  she  thought  a  great  deal  of 
Roswell  Gardiner  and  of  his  suit.  It  was,  consequently, 
the  most  natural  thing  in  the  world  that  she  should  have 
fallen  into  some  such  error  as  this.  But,  now  that  the 
subject  was  brought  to  her  mind  in  this  new  light,  she 
arose,  went  to  her  own  room,  and  soon  re-appeared  with 
the  pnper  in  her  hand.  Both  Mr.  Job  Pratt  and  Rev.  Mr. 
Whittle  offered  to  relieve  her  of  the  burthen ;  and  the  for 
mer,  by  a  pretty  decided  movement,  did  actually  succeed 
in  getting  possession  of  the  documents.  The  papers  were 
36* 


424  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

done  up  in  the  form  of  a  large  business  letter,  was  duly 
sealed  with  wax,  and  was  addressed  to  "  Mr.  Rorwell  Gar 
diner,  Master  of  the  Schooner  Sea  Lion,  now  absent  on  a 
voyage."  The  superscription  was  read  aloud,  a  little  under 
the  influence  of  surprise;  notwithstanding  which,  Mr.  Job 
Pratt  was  very  coolly  proceeding  to  open  the  packet,  pre 
cisely  as  if  it  had  been  addressed  to  himself.  In  this  de 
cided  step,  Mrs.  Martin,  and  Mrs.  Thomas,  and  Rev.  Mr. 
Whittle,  might  be  set  down  as  accessories  before  the  act; 
for  each  approached ;  and  so  eager  were  the  two  women, 
that  they  actually  assisted  in  breaking  the  seal. 

"  If  that  letter  is  addressed  to  me,"  said  Roswell  Gardi 
ner,  with  firmness  and  authority,  "  I  claim  the  right  to 
open  it  myself.  It  is  unusual  for  those  to  whom  a  letter  is 
not  addressed  to  assume  this  office." 

"  But,  it  comes  from  Deacon  Pratt,"  cried  the  widow 
Martin,  "  and  may  contain  his  will." 

"  In  .which  case,  a  body  would  think  I  have  some  rights 
concerned,"  said  Mr.  Job  Pratt,  a  little  more  coolly,  but 
with  manifest  doubts. 

"  Sartain  !"  put  in  Mrs.  Thomas.  "  Brothers  and  sisters, 
and  even  cousins,  come  before  strangers,  any  day.  Here 
we  are,  a  brother  and  sister  of  the  deacon,  and  we  ought 
to  have  a  right  to  read  his  letters." 

All  this  time  Roswell  had  stood  with  an  extended  arm, 
and  an  eye  that  caused  Mr.  Job  Pratt  to  control  his  impa 
tience.  Mary  advanced  close  to  his  side,  as  if  to  sustain 
him,  but  she  said  nothing. 

"  There  is  a  law,  with  severe  penalties,  against  know 
ingly  opening  a  letter  addressed  to  another,"  resumed  Ros 
well,  steadily;  "  and  it  shall  be  enforced  against  any  one 
who  shall  presume  to  open  one  of  mine.  If  that  letter  has 
my  address,  sir,  I  demand  it;  and  I  will  have  it,  at  every 
hazard." 

Roswell  advanced  a  step  nearer  Mr.  Job  Pratt,  and  the 
letter  was  reluctantly  yielded ;  though  not  until  the  widow 
Martin  had  made  a  nervous  but  abortive  snatch  at  it. 

"  At  any  rate,  it  ought  to  be  opened  in  our  presence," 
put  in  this  woman,  "  that  we  may  see  what  is  in  it." 

"  And  by  what  right,  ma'am?  Have  I  not  the  privilege 
of  others,  to  read  my  own  letters  when  and  where  I  please? 


THE     SEA     LIONS.  425 

If  the  contents  of  this,  however,  do  really  relate  to  the  late 
Deacon  Pratt's  property,  I  am  quite  willing  they  should 
be  made  known.  There  is  nothing  on  this  superscription 
to  tell  me  to  open  the  packet  in  the  presence  of  witnesses; 
but,  under  all  the  circumstances,  I  prefer  it  should  be 
done." 

Hereupon  Roswell  proceeded  deliberately  to  look  into 
the  package.  The  seal  was  already  broken,  and  he  exhi 
bited  it  in  that  state  to  all  in  the  room,  with  a  meaning 
smile,  after  which  he  brought  to  light  and  opened  some 
written  instrument,  that  was  engrossed  on  a  single  sheet 
of  foolscap,  and  had  the  names  of  several  witnesses  at  its 
bottom. 

"  Ay,  ay,  that's  it,"  said  Baiting  Joe,  for  the  room  was 
crowded  with  all  sorts  of  people ;  "that's  the  dockerment. 
I  know'd  it  as  soon  as  I  laid  eyes  on  it !" 

"  And  what  do  you  know  about  it,  Josy?"  demanded  the 
widow,  eagerly.  "  Cousin  Job,  this  man  may  turn  out  a 
most  important  and  considerable  witness !" 

"  What  do  I  know,  Mrs.  Martin  ?  Why  I  seed  the 
deacon  sign  for  the  seals,  and  exercute.  As  soon  as  I 
heard  Squire  Craft,  who  was  down  here  from  Riverhead 
on  that  'ere  very  business,  talk  so  much  about  seals,  I 
know'd  Captain  Gar'ner  must  have  suthin'  to  do  with  the 
matter.  The  deacon's  very  heart  was  in  the  schooner  and 
her  v'y'ge,  and  I  think  it  was  the  craft  that  finished  him, 
in  the  end." 

"  Won't  that  set  aside  a  codicil,  cousin  Job,  if  so  be  the 
deacon  has  r'ally  codicilled  off  Captain  Gar'ner  and  Mary  ?" 

"  We  shall  see,  we  shall  see.  So  you  was  present,  Josy, 
at  the  making  of  a  will  ?" 

"  Sartain — and  was  a  witness  to  the  insterment,  as  the 
squire  called  it.  I  s'pose  he  sent  for  me  to  be  a  witness, 
as  I  am  some  acquainted  with  the  sealin'  business,  having 
made  two  v'y'ges  out  of  Stunnin'tun,  many  years  since. 
Ay,  ay  >  *hat  's  the  insterment,  and  pretty  well  frightened 
was  the  deacon  when  he  put  his  name  to  it,  I  can  tell 
you!" 

"  Frightened  !"  echoed  the  brother — "  that 's  ag'in  law, 
at  any  rate.  The  instrument  that  a  man  signs  because 
he 's  frightened,  is  no  instrument  at  all,  in  law.  As  respects 


426  THE     SEA     LIONS. 

a  will,  it  is  what  we  justices  of  the  peace  call  '  dies  non,' 
or,  don't  die;  that  is,  in  law." 

"Can  that  be  so,  squire  Job?"  asked  the  sister,  who 
had  said  but  little  hitherto,  but  had  thought  all  the  more. 

"  Yes,  that 's  Latin,  I  s'pose,  and  good  Latin,  too,  they 
tell  me.  A  man  may  be  dead  in  the  flesh,  but  living  in 
law." 

"  La!  how  cur'ous!  Law  is  a  wonderful  thing,  to  them 
that  understands  it." 

The  worthy  Mrs.  Thomas  expressed  a  much  more  pro 
found  sentiment  than  that  of  which  she  was  probably  aware, 
herself.  Law  is  a  wonderful  thing,  and  most  wonderful  is 
he  who  can  tell  what  it  is  to-day,  or  is  likely  to  be  to-mor 
row.  The  law  of  testamentary  devises,  in  particular,  has 
more  than  the  usual  uncertainty,  the  great  interest  that  is 
taken  by  the  community  in  the  large  estates  of  certain  in 
dividuals  who  are  placed  without  the  ordinary  social  cate 
gories  by  the  magnitude  of  their  fortunes,  preventing  any 
thing  from  becoming  absolutely  settled,  as  respects  them. 
In  Turkey,  and  in  America,  the  possession  of  great  wealth 
is  very  apt  to  ruin  their  possessors;  proscription,  in  some 
form  or  other,  being  pretty  certain  to  be  the  consequences. 
In  Turkey,  such  has  long  and  openly  been  the  fact,  the 
bow-string  usually  lying  at  the  side  of  the  strong  box;  but, 
in  this  country,  the  system  is  in  its  infancy,  though  advanc 
ing  towards  maturity  with  giant  strides.  Twenty  years 
more,  resembling  the  twenty  that  are  just  past,  in  which 
the  seed  recently  sown  broadcast  shall  have  time  to  reach 
maturity,  and,  in  our  poor  opinion,  the  great  work  of  de 
moralization,  in  this  important  particular,  will  be  achieved. 
We  are  much  afraid  that  the  boasted  progress,  of  which 
we  hear  so  much,  will  resemble  the  act  of  the  man  who 
fancied  he  could  teach  his  horse  to  live  without  food — just 
as  he  believed  the  poor  beast  was  perfect,  it  died  of 
inanition! 

Roswell  read  Baiting  Joe's  '  insterment'  twice,  and  then 
he  placed  it,  with  manly  tenderness,  in  the  hands  of  Mary. 
The  girl  read  the  document,  too,  tears  starting  to  her  eyes ; 
but,  a  bright  blush  suffused  her  face,  as  she  returned  the 
will  to  her  lover. 

'4Ah!  do  not  read  it  now,  Roswell,"  she  said,  in  an 


THE     SEA     LIONS.  427 

under  tone;  but  the  stillness  and  expectation  were  so  pro 
found,  that  every  syllable  she  uttered  was  heard  by  all  in 
ihe  room. 

"  And  why  not  read  it  now,  Miss  Mary !"  cried  the 
Widow  Martin.  "  Methinks  now  is  the  proper  time  to  read 
it.  If  I  'm  to  be  codicilled  out  of  that  will,  I  want  to  know 
it." 

"  It  is  better,  in  every  respect,  that  the  company  present 
should  know  all  that  is  to  be  known,  at  once,"  observed 
Mr.  Job  Pratt.  "  Before  the  will  is  read,  if  that  be  the 
will,  Captain  Gar'ner — " 

"  It  is  the  will  of  the  late  Deacon  Pratt,  duly  signed, 
sealed,  and  witnessed,  I  believe,  sir." 

"  One  word  more,  then,  before  it  is  read.  I  think  you 
said,  Josy,  that  the  deceased  was  frightened  when  he  signed 
that  will  1  I  do  not  express  any  opinion  until  I  hear  the 
will ;  perhaps  a'ter  it  is  read,  I  shall  think  or  say  nothin' 
about  this  fright;  though  the  instrument  that  a  man  signs 
because  he  is  frightened,  if  the  fright  be  what  I  call  a  legal 
fright,  is  no  instrument  at  all." 

"  But  such  was  not  the  deacon's  case,  Squire  Job,"  put 
in  Baiting  Joe,  at  once.  "  He  did  not  sign  the  insterment 
because  he  was  frightened,  but  was  frightened  because  he 
signed  the  insterment.  Let  the  boat  go  right  eend  fore 
most,  squire." 

"  Read  the  will,  Captain  Gar'ner,  if  you  have  it,"  said 
Mr.  Job  Pratt,  with  decision.  "  It  is  proper  that  we  should 
know  who  is  executor.  Friends,  will  you  be  silent  for  a 
moment  ?" 

Amid  a  death-like  stillness,  Roswell  Gardiner  now  read 
as  follows : — 

"  In  the  name  of  God,  amen.  I,  Ichabod  Pratt,  of  the 
town  of  Southold,  and  county  of  Suffolk,  and  state  of  New 
York,  being  of  failing  bodily  health,  but  of  sound  mind,  do 
make  and  declare  this  to  be  my  last  will  and  testament. 

"  I  bequeath  to  my  niece,  Mary  Pratt,  only  child  of  my 
late  brother,  Israel  Pratt,  all  my  real  estate,  whatsoever  it 
may  be,  and  wheresoever  situate,  to  be  held  by  her,  her  heirs 
and  assigns,  for  ever,  in  fee. 

"  I  bequeath  to  my  brother,  Job  Pratt,  any  horse  of 
which  I  shall  die  possessed,  to  be  chosen  by  himself,  as  a 


428  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

compensation  for  the  injury  inflicted  on  a  horse  of  his, 
while  in  my  use. 

"  I  bequeath  to  my  sister,  Jane  Thomas,  the  large  look 
ing-glass  that  is  hanging  up  in  the  east  bed-room  of  my 
house,  and  which  was  once  the  property  of  our  beloved 
mother. 

"  I  bequeath  to  the  widow  Catherine  Martin,  my  cousin, 
the  big  pin-cushion  .in  the  said  east  chamber,  which  she 
used  so  much  to  praise  and  admire. 

"  I  bequeath  to  my  said  niece,  Mary  Pratt,  the  only  child 
of  my  late  brother,  Israel  Pratt,  aforesaid,  all  of  my  per 
sonal  estate,  whether  in  possession  or  existing  in  equity, 
including  money  at  use,  vessels,  stock  on  farm,  all  other 
sorts  of  stock,  furniture,  wearing  apparel,  book-debts, 
money  in  hand,  and  all  sorts  of  personal  property  what 
ever. 

"  I  nominate  and  appoint  Roswell  Gardiner,  now  absent 
on  a  sealing  voyage,  in  my  employment,  as  the  sole  executor 
of  this  my  last  will,  provided  he  return  home  within  six 
months  of  my  decease ;  and  should  he  not  return  home 
within  the  said  six  months,  then  I  appoint  my  above-men 
tioned  niece  and  heiress,  Mary  Pratt,  the  sole  executrix  of 
this  my  will. 

"  I  earnestly  advise  my  said  niece,  Mary  Pratt,  to  marry 
the  said  Roswell  Gardiner;  but  I  annex  no  conditions  what 
ever  to  this  advice,  wishing  to  leave  my  adopted  daughter 
free  to  do  as  she  may  think  best." 

The  instrument  was,  in  all  respects,  duly  executed,  and 
there  could  not  be  a  doubt  of  its  entire  validity.  Mary  felt 
a  little  bewildered,  as  well  as  greatly  embarrassed.  So 
perfectly  disinterested  had  been  all  her  care  of  her  uncle, 
arid  so  humble  her  wishes,  that  she  did  not  for  some  time 
regard  herself  as  the  owner  of  a  property  that  she  had  all 
her  life  been  accustomed  to  consider  as  a  part  of  her  late 
uncle.  The  heirs  expectant,  "  a'ter  reading  the  inster- 
ment,"  as  Baiting  Joe  told  his  cronies,  when  he  related 
the  circumstances  over  a  mug  of  cider  that  evening,  "  fore 
and  aft,  and  overhauling  it  from  truck  to  keelson,  give  the 
matter  up,  as  a  bad  job.  They  could  n't  make  nawthin'  out 
of  oppersition,"  continued  Joe,  "  and  so  they  tuck  the 
horse,  and  the  looking-glass,  and  the  pin-cushion,  and 


THE     SEA     LIONS.  429 

cleared  out  with  meir  cargo.  You  could  n't  get  one  of 
that  breed  to  leave  as  much  as  a  pin  behind,  to  which  he 
thought  the  law  would  give  him  a  right.  Squire  Job  went 
off  very  unwillingly;  for  so  strong  was  his  belief  in  his 
claim,  that  he  had  made  up  his  mind,  as  he  told  me  him 
self,  to  break  up  the  north  meadow,  and  put  it  in  corn  this 
coming  season." 

"  They  say  that  Minister  Whittle  took  it  very  hard  that 
nawthin'  was  said  about  him,  or  about  meetin',  in  the  dea 
con's  will,"  observed  Jake  Davis,  one  of  Baiting  Joe's 
cronies. 

"That  he  did;  and  he  tuck  it  so  hard  that  everybody 
allows  the  two  sermons  he  preached  the  next  Sabba'  day  to 
be  the  very  two  worst  he  ever  did  preach." 

"They  must  have  been  pretty  bad,  then,"  quaintly  ob 
served  Davis;  "  I've  long  set  down  Minister  Whittle's  dis 
courses  as  being  a  lectle  the  worst  going,  when  you  give 
him  a  chance." 

It  is  unnecessary  to  relate  any  more  of  this  dialogue,  nor 
should  we  have  given  the  little  we  have,  did  it  not  virtually 
explain  what  actually  occurred  on  the  publication  of  the 
contents  of  the  will.  Roswell  met  with  no  opposition  in 
proving  the  instrument,  and  the  day  after  he  was  admitted 
to  act  as  executor  he  was  married  to  Mary  Pratt,  and  be 
came  tenant,  by  the  courtesy,  to  all  her  real  estate;  such 
being  the  law  then,  though  it  is  so  no  longer.  Now,  a  man 
and  his  wife  may  have  a  very  pretty  family  quarrel  about 
the  ownership  of  a  dozen  tea-spoons,  and  the  last,  so  far 
as  we  can  see,  may  order  the  first  out  of  one  of  her  rock 
ing  chairs,  if  she  see  fit !  Surely  domestic  peace  is  not  so 
trifling  a  matter  that  the  law  should  seek  to  add  new  sub 
jects  of  strife  to  the  many  that  seem  to  be  nearly  insepara 
ble  from  the  married  state. 

Let  this  be  as  it  may,  no  such  law  existed  when  Roswell 
Gardiner  and  Mary  Pratt  became  man  and  wife.  One  of 
the  first  acts  of  the  happy  young  couple,  after  they  were 
united,  was  to  make  a  suitable  disposition  of  the  money 
found  buried  at  the  foot  of  the  tree,  on  the  so-much-talked- 
of  key.  Its  amount  was  a  little  more  than  2000  dollars, 
the  pirate  who  made  the  revelation  to  Daggett  having,  in 
all  probability,  been  ignorant  himself  of  the  real  sum  that 


430  THE     SEA     LIONS. 

had  been  thus  secreted.  By  a  specific  bargain  with  the 
crew,  all  this  money  belonged  to  the  deacon  ;  and,  conse 
quently,  it  had  descended  to  his  niece,  and  through  her 
was  now  legally  the  property  of  Roswell.  The  young  man 
was  not  altogether  free  from  scruples  about  using  money 
that  had  been  originally  taken  as  booty  by  pirates,  and  his 
conscientious  wife  had  still  greater  objections.  After  con 
ferring  together  on  the  subject,  however,  and  seeing  the 
impossibility  of  restoring  the  gold  to  those  from  whom  it 
had  been  forced  in  the  first  place,  the  doubloons  were  dis 
tributed  among  the  families  of  those  who  had  lost  their 
lives  at  Sealer's  Land.  The  shares  did  not  amount  to 
much,  it  is  true;  but  they  did  good,  and  cheered  the  hearts 
of  two  or  three  widows  and  dependent  sisters. 

Nor  did  Roswell  Gardiner's  care  for  their  welfare  stop 
here.  He  had  the  Sea  Lion  put  in  good  order,  removed 
her  decks,  raised  upon  her,  and  put  her  in  her  original 
condition,  arid  sent  her  to  Sealer's  Land,  again,  under  the 
orders  of  Hazard,  who  was  instructed  to  take  in  all  the  oil 
and  skins  that  had  been  left  behind,  and  to  fill  up,  if  he 
could,  without  risking  too  much  by  delay.  All  this  was 
successfully  done,  the  schooner  coming  back,  after  a  very 
short  voyage,  and  quite  full.  The  money  made  by  this 
highly  successful  adventure,  had  the  effect  to  console 
several  of  those  who  had  great  cause  to  regret  their  pre 
vious  losses. 

As  to  Roswell  and  Mary,  they  had  much  reason  to  be 
content  with  their  lot.  The  deacon's  means  were  found 
to  be  much  more  considerable  than  had  been  supposed. 
When  all  was  brought  into  a  snug  state,  Roswell  found 
that  his  wife  was  worth  more  than  thirty  thousand  dollars, 
a  sum  which  constituted  wealth  on  Oyster  Pond,  in  that 
day.  We  have,  however,  already  hinted  that  the  simplicity, 
and  we  fear  with  it  the  happiness,  of  the  place  has  de 
parted.  A  railroad  terminates  within  a  short  distance  of 
the  deacon's  old  residence,  bringing  with  it  the  clatter, 
ambition,  and  rivalry,  of  such  a  mode  of  travelling.  What 
is  even  worse,  the  venerable  and  expressive  name  of l(  Oys 
ter  Pond,"  one  that  conveys  in  its  very  sound  the  idea  of 
savoury  dishes,  and  an  abundance  of  a  certain  and  a  very 
agreeable  sort  has  been  changed  to  "Orient,"  Heaven 


THE    SEA    LIONS.  431 

save  the  mark !  Long  Island  has,  hitherto,  been  famous, 
in  the  history  of  New  York,  for  the  homely  piquancy  of 
its  names,  which  usually  conveyed  a  graphic  idea  of  the 
place  indicated.  It  is  true,  "  Jerusalem"  cannot  boast  of 
its  Solomon's  Temple,  nor  "  Babylon"  of  its  Hanging  Gar 
dens  ;  but,  by  common  consent,  it  is  understood  that  these 
two  names,  and  some  half-a-dozen  more  of  the  same 
quality,  are  to  be  taken  by  their  opposites. 

Roswell  Gardiner  did  not  let  Stimson  pass  out  of  his 
sight,  as  is  customary  with  seamen  when  they  quit  a  vessel. 
He  made  him  master  of  a  sloop  that  plied  between  New 
York  and  Southold,  in  which  employment  the  good  old 
man  fulfilled  his  time,  leaving  to  a  widowed  sister  who 
dwelt  with  him,  the  means  o?  a  comfortable  livelihood,  for 
life. 

The  only  bit  of  management  of  which  Mary  could  be 
accused,  was  practised  by  her  shortly  after  Strmson's  death, 
and  some  six  or  eight  years  after  her  own  marriage.  One 
of  her  school  friends,  and  a  relative,  had  married  a  person 
who  dwelt  *  west  of  the  bridge,'  as  it  48  the  custom  to  say 
of  all  the  counties  that  lie  west  of  Cayuga  Lake.  This 
person,  whose  name  was  Hight,  had  mills,  and  made  large 
quantities  of  that  excellent  flour,  that  is  getting  to  enjoy 
its  merited  reputation  even  in  the  old  world.  He  was  dis 
posed  to  form  a  partnership  with  Roswell,  who  sold  his 
property,  and  migrated  to  the  great  west,  as  the  country 
'  west  of  the  bridge'  was  then  termed,  though  it  is  now 
necessary  to  go  a  thousand  miles  farther,  in  order  to  reach 
what  is  termed  "  the  western  country."  Mary  had  an  im 
portant  agency  in  bringing 'about  this  migration.  She  had 
seen  certain  longings  after  the  ocean,  and  seals,  and  whales, 
in  her  husband ;  and  did  not  consider  him  safe,  as  long  as 
he  could  scent  the  odours  of  a  salt  marsh.  There  is  a  de 
light  in  this  fragrance  that  none  can  appreciate  as  tho 
roughly  as  those  who  have  enjoyed  it  in  youth ;  it  remains 
as  long  as  human  senses  retain  their  faculties.  An 
increasing  family,  however,  and  el  dorado  of  the  west, 
which,  in  that  day,  produced  wheat,  were  inducements  for 
a  removal  there,  and,  aided  by  Mary's  gentle  management, 
produced  the  desired  effect ;  and  for  more  than  twenty  years 
Roswell  Gardiner  has  been  a  very  successful  miller,  on  a 


432  THE    SEA    LIONS. 

large  scale,  in  one  of  the  western  counties  of  what  is  called 
"  the  Empire  State."  We  do  not  think  the  sobriquets  of 
this  country  very  happy,  in  general,  but  sh.all  quarrel  less 
with  this,  than  with  the  phrase  of  "  commercial  emporium," 
which  is  much  as  if  one  should  say  "  a  townish  town." 

Roswell  Gardiner  has  never  wavered  in  his  faith,  from 
the  time  when  his  feelings  were  awakened  by  the  just  view 
of  his  own  insignificance,  as  compared  to  the  power  of 
God !  He  then  learned  the  first,  great  lesson  in  religious 
belief,  that  of  humility ;  without  which  no  man  can  be  truly 
penitent,  or  truly  a  Christian.  He  no  longer  thought  of 
measuring  the  Deity  with  his  narrow  faculties,  or  of  setting 
up  his  blind  conclusions,  in  the  face  of  positive  revelations. 
He  saw  that  all  must  be  accepted,  or  none ;  and  there  was 
too  much  evidence,  too  much  inherent  truth,  a  morality 
too  divine,  to  allow  a  mind  like  his  to  reject  the  gospel 
altogether.  With  Mary  at  his  side,  he  has  continued  to 
worship  the  Trinity,  accepting  its  mysteries  in  an  humble 
reliance  on  the  words  of  inspired  men. 


THE  END, 


THIS  BOOK  IS  DUE  ON  THE  LAST  DATE 
STAMPED  BELOW 


30ro-6,'14 


Cooper 


4B927 

J.  F. 

.  (Sea  Lions; 


955 

0778 

v.32 


or,  the  los't  sealers. 


._ 


_ 


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